SESSION A1

A1 Haidle, Miriam Noël

Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities

INTRODUCTION – PLEISTOCENE MODERNITY: AN EXCLUSIVELY AFRO-EUROPEAN ISSUE?

Based on the appearances of specialized blade industries, bone and antler tools, and art and body ornaments, debate on the origins of cognitive and cultural modernity was for decades centred in Europe. Ten years ago, the focus of the search for modernity shifted to Africa. The trait list of modern behaviour has recently been extended to include notational/incised pieces, fishing, shellfishing, mining, long distance exchange, simple and barbed points, microliths, pigment processing, and grindstones. The time frame for some of these traits in Africa has been expanded back to the Middle Pleistocene. But all perspectives in this debate currently exclude East and Southeast Asia, and the only evidence of modernity from this area to be widely discussed has been the colonization of Sahul/Australia across sea. For Europe, the assemblage of archaeologically visible cultural innovations is often portrayed as a ‘‘package’’, but such a claim cannot be made for the Indo-Pacific region. Habgood and Franklin (JHE 55, 2008) have recently stated that this “package” of cultural innovations did not exist as an entity from the beginning of Sahul settlement, and that its “components were gradually assembled over a 30,000 year period”. Thus, in the current stage of discussion, three main questions arise from an Indo-Pacific perspective that will be discussed in this session: 1. Is there pre-sapiens evidence from Asia for traits of modern human behaviour? 2. How valid is the current list of symptoms for detecting or refuting the existence of modern human behaviour? 3. Can other, more general and basic, aspects of modern human behaviour be identified?

A1 Lbova, L.V. 

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SD RAS, Novosibirsk State University, Russia

EVIDENCE OF MODERN HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN THE EARLY UPPER PALEOLITHIC STAGE IN SIBERIA

A construction of models or reconstruction of the different phenomena of having no written language culture is a difficult methodical task. Within the framework of discussion about the formation of culture of modern human in Eurasia, the problem of early symbolism is the subject of particular interest. Siberian sign (symbolic, sacral, unpractical) behavior typical for early Homo sapiens sapiens, correlates with the archaeological context of Upper Paleolithic of Eurasian highlands. There are some basic features characterizing modern human sign behavior in archaeological assemblages of early Upper Paleolithic:

Recent discoveries of the series of artifacts in Siberia indicate the existence of symbolic sign activity on the early stages of forming of modern human culture. For today the archeological assemblage includes more than 100 items from bone, stone, shell, and sea shells. Artifacts were unearthed from stratifying sites such as Tolbor (Mongolia, excavation of Gladisheva S.A.), Kamenka, Varvarina Gora, Hotik, Podzvonkaya, Hengerecte (Transbaikalia, excavation of L.V. Lbova, V.I. Tashak), Voennyi Gospital, Pereselencheskyi punkt-1 (sub-Baikal region, excavation of G.I. Medvedev, E.A. Lipnina), Strashnaya Cave, Kara-Bom, Denisova Cave (Altai, excavation of A.P. Derevyanko, V.T. Petrin, M.V.Shun’kov, A.N. Zenin). These complexes are dated in the range of 30-43 kyr, and related technologically to the Initial Upper Paleolithic.

The subjects of particular interest are the archaeological and chronological context of artifacts (living horizons, structure of sequence, placing features, etc), and the items themselves, their morphological, technological, semantic characteristics. Research of ancient graphic human activity, cultural archetypes origin and forming in Initial Upper Paleolithic in Siberia are based on technological and morphological analysis of items showing the symbolic behavior, that makes basis of paradigm of study and interpretation of these materials.

The early Upper Paleolithic materials in Siberia are agreed with stadia and territorial context. On the whole, artifacts demonstrate the most ancient technologically and typologically developed complex of objects in Eurasia with established manufacturing and processing system, expressed in the stylistic series of items. Decoration complex along with sign behavior features listed above characterize the fairly early stage of culture of early modern humans.

A1 Bulmer, Susan

Bulmer and Associates 10 Tansley Avenue, Epsom Auckland 1023, New Zealand

LATE PLEISTOCENE STONE TOOL TECHNOLOGY IN NEW GUINEA AND ITS POSSIBLE ORIGINS

Many people think that New Guinea had only one type of formal stone tool in the Late Pleistocene, the waisted axe, the only other artefacts being utilised flakes. The waisted axe was first described from dated pre-Holocene deposits in 1964, and can now be seen as the commonest artefact in the Late Pleistocene. It is a relatively long flaked axe-like tool that has notches on either side of its middle generally thought to be a device related to hafting, and it has a curved flaked cutting edge at one end. Over the years other axe-like artefacts with different forms of “butt modification” have also been found in 5 Late Pleistocene sites in the Highlands, Yuku, Kuk, Nombe, Kafiavana, and Kosipe, and at only one site in the Lowlands, Bobongara.

This paper reviews a restudy of these early artefact types that found 3 parallel technological traditions of stone axes, based on their form of butt modification: 1) “waisted”, 3 types; 2) “unwaisted” axes (without side notching), 2 types, hafted and unhafted, the former with flaked working edges and the latter with ground working edges; 3) 2 types of “stemmed” artefacts, one a stemmed wide bladed spade, the other a stemmed formal flake tool.

The Highland sites were occupied during at least part of the period from before 30,000 BP to the end of the Pleistocene at 10,000 BP. The montane sites in New Guinea each contained from 2 to 4 of the 7 artefact types defined and their dating indicates they were present in the Highlands throughout the Pleistocene, and at Bobongars, 4 of the montane types of the montane types are present, although only 3 waisted axes are dated to before 40,600 BP. However, these are all unifacially flaked rather than bifacially flaked like the montane waisted axes, and the have different forms of waist. This may indicate Bobongara represents an earlier phase of a widespread New Guinea Pleistocene stone technology.

A1 Habgood, Phillip J. and Natalie R. Franklin

School of Social Sciences, The University of Queensland

GEOGRAPHICAL PATTERNING OF THE “PACKAGE OF ARCHAEOLOGICALLY VISIBLE TRAITS” OF MODERN HUMAN BEHAVIOUR WITHIN GREATER AUSTRALIA

The Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition in Europe has furnished a “package” of archaeologically visible innovations that are claimed to reflect modern human behaviour. It has also been proposed that the “package” was exported from Africa to other regions of the Old World. A review of the late Pleistocene archaeological record of Sahul (Habgood & Franklin 2008) found that the components of the “package” were gradually assembled over a 30,000 year period following initial occupation of the continent, indicating that the “package” was not brought by the earliest colonising groups as proposed and supporting the view that there is currently no “package of archaeologically visible traits” that can be used to establish modern human behaviours. This presentation explores the geographical patterning of the individual traits within Greater Australia and concludes that the chronological and geographical pattern evident is due to local conditions.

A1 Porr, Martin

University of Western Australia

IDENTIFYING BEHAVIORAL MODERNITY: LESSONS FROM SAHUL

The Pleistocene archaeological record of Sahul usually does not feature prominently in discussions about the origins of modern human behaviour. The main reason for this relative absence certainly is the fact that the archaeological record of Sahul was exclusively produced by anatomically modern humans while providing no evidence for a local biological (and cognitive) evolution. However, I want to argue here that it is exactly this circumstance that makes the Sahul evidence particularly important. With a modern human occupation of possibly up to 60,000 years it provides an important test case for models of the interplay of human cultural and cognitive evolution. An analysis of the Sahul archaeological record does question significant assumptions about the links between cognitive capabilities, material culture expressions and biological evolution. It consequently challenges us to search for alternative conceptual frameworks that are less focused on the presence of “packages” and “traits”, but concentrate more on the dynamic interrelationships between social interactions, subtle material patterns and learning processes. This approach will finally provide a means to break away from the problematic assumptions about human ‘modernity’ as a Western and essentialist concept which is ultimately counterproductive to an understanding of human origins.

A1 Langley, Michelle C.

School of Social Science, The University of Queensland

BEHAVIOURAL MODERNITY IN SAHUL'S PLEISTOCENE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD:

TAPHONOMY, ARCHAEOLOGICAL SAMPLING AND PREVIOUS HYPOTHESES.

Sahul, the combined landmass of Australia and New Guinea, provides a record of behavioural modernity extending over at least the last 50,000 years. Colonised solely by anatomically and behaviourally modern humans, this continent provides an alternative record in the investigation of behavioural modernity to the extensively studied Middle Stone Age African and Upper Palaeolithic Eurasian archaeological records.

In the past, the archaeological record of behavioural modernity in Sahul has been described as simple, sparse and essentially different to those records of Africa and Eurasia. These differences have been attributed to either low population densities during the Pleistocene or the loss of behavioural ‘traits’ on the journey from Africa to Sahul. While a number of studies have been undertaken, no single researcher has attempted to investigate the role of taphonomy and sampling on the representation of behavioural modernity in the archaeological record, despite Sahul being characterised by extreme environments, highly variable climates, and archaeologically, usually only small excavations.

This study compiles the most complete record of chronology, evidence for behavioural modernity and excavation details for 223 Pleistocene sites yet attempted. It is also the most extensive dataset assembled for the examination of the issue of behavioural modernity on a single landmass. Site spatial and temporal distribution, site characteristics, excavations, absolute dating, preservation and sample size are examined to determine how the behavioural complexity of a modern human population is characterised on this isolated southern continent and the impact of taphonomy and archaeological sampling on that representation.

Results demonstrate that preservation and sampling play a significant role in structuring the spatial and temporal representation of behavioural modernity in the archaeological record of Pleistocene Sahul. Contrary to previous findings, the evidence for behavioural modernity in Sahul is found to resemble the archaeological records of the African Middle Stone Age and Eurasian Upper Palaeolithic in terms of behaviour and artefact diversity. In terms of global narratives, these results also indicate that current understandings of behavioural modernity are incomplete and may misrepresent levels of behavioural complexity in early periods in some regions.

A1 Pawlik, Alfred

Archaeological Studies Program, University of the Philippines

MODERN PACKAGES IN THE PHILIPPINES PREHISTORIC RECORD. ANY LEFTOVERS?

In Europe, as well as in Africa, the emergence of modern Homo sapiens is associated with traits of “modern behaviour” seen in the more or less sudden appearance of “packages” as part of their cultural assemblage. Examples are the beginning of art, blade technology, tools made of organic materials like bone and antler, and composite tool design. For Southeast Asia’s prehistory, however, there seems to be a remarkable absence of such modern traits until app. 10.000 BP.

On the other hand, applying models deriving from traditional typological and technological studies on material cultures of an entirely different ecosystem, esp. during the last glacial, might not be very useful here. Classifying lithic assemblages morphologically and technologically in order to press them into established stone tool typologies from other parts of the world were not successful so far. Until now, the formation of a specific regional typology system for Southeast Asia has not been established. A modernity discussion, therefore, seems to be hampered by methodological deficiencies and rather needs to consider functional aspects and the reconstruction of tool use to reconstruct actual behaviour and not only the process of tool making.

In the Philippines, sites located on the islands of Palawan and Luzon have mainly contributed to Pleistocene Archaeology. Neither region, however, has provided lithic assemblages with characteristic features of modern technology and behaviour. Several assemblages underwent recent technological and especially microscopic use-wear and residue analyses. The functional reconstruction of prehistoric tasks and activities based on traces on the used tools is seen as a more reliable and typologically independent indicator of modern behavioural traits in the Palaeolithic of Southeast Asia.

A1 Gilligan, Ian

School of Archaeology and Anthropology, The Australian National University

A1 CLOTHING AND MODERN HUMAN BEHAVIOUR IN AUSTRALIA

Recent reviews have highlighted the challenges posed by the Australian archaeological record for the concept of modern human behaviour. The archaeologically-visible components make only a limited, sporadic and generally delayed appearance, despite the presence of modern humans on the continent from 45,000 years ago. Evidence is presented to suggest that some key aspects of modern human behaviour relate to the use and manufacture of clothing for thermal reasons, and that recent revisions to the trait list (with specialized blade industries, for example, falling out of favour) have weakened the validity of the concept. By connecting some components to the manufacture and repercussions of clothing, their fluctuating occurrence can be linked to varying environmental conditions throughout the late Pleistocene, and earlier. One region of special interest for the debate is Tasmania, where certain signs of behavioural modernity ( bone tools, resource specialization, novel lithic technology and, briefly, cave art) emerged during the Last Glacial Maximum, only to diminish or disappear during the Holocene. It is argued that a clothing-based model of modern human behaviour is more viable than existing formulations not only in Australia but probably elsewhere in the Indo-Pacific area, and perhaps globally.

SESSION A2

A2 Westaway, Kira E.

Department of Environment and Geography, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia

The potential of cave breccia deposits in island Southeast Asia: preserved archives of faunal and hominid history

Widespread palaeoenvironmental changes in the last 500,000 years caused by variable climatic conditions in one of the most populous regions on Earth – Southeast Asia, enticed fauna (and humans) into this region causing faunal turnovers, extinctions and created new faunal assemblages. During this time, open environments prevailed in the drier glacial periods, but fauna entered this region when changing climatic conditions brought about the expansion of the rainforests. The exact timing of these dispersals is uncertain because the age of many of the key fossil sites is not known due to lack of dating applications. To reliably reconstruct these changes and provide fresh insights into the role of Asia in the evolution of fauna requires the dating of habitat-diagnostic fossil remains preserved in cave rock deposits, such as bone breccias. This deposit is commonly found cemented to cave walls in this region and can provide a rich source of faunal and palaeoenvironmental evidence, especially from habitats such as rainforests that are not well represented by other sources of fossil evidence. Breccias are invariably well-preserved, can span millions of years, are easy to access, and, in contrast to uncemented cave sediments, do not suffer from bioturbation, reworking or subsidence. Thus the analysis of well-preserved cave breccia is the key to rectifying this chronological impasse, but this valuable source of fossil evidence has yet to be fully exploited due to the apparent lack of a suitable dating strategy. We present a novel method for determining the age of key fossil breccia sites and the timing of faunal migration in Southeast Asia using a combination of red TL and TIMS U-series dating techniques, which has already been successfully applied to sites in Java and Sumatra. In this paper we present preliminary results of these analyses to demonstrate the potential of this approach.

A2 Kapid, Rubiyanto

Arif, Johan

Faculty of Earth Science and Technology, Institute of Technology Bandung, Indonesia

SEDIMENTARY FORMATIONS WITH HOMINID FOSSILS IN JAVA, INDONESIA

The East Java northern basin, which is located between 110° 30' and 113° East; 6° 22' and 7° 41' South, has become a consideration by earth scientists because of three main objects that are oil and gas resource, the occurrence of continuous sedimentary layers from Mid-Miocene up to Pleistocene, and the existence of vertebrate as well as hominid fossils in some quaternary sediments. Based on its physiographical expression, there are four zones in this basin that are (from north to south) the North Java sea platform, Rembang, the Randublatung depression, and Kendeng. So far, hominid and vertebrate fossils have been discovered in the Kendeng zone, which has eight stratigraphic units extending from Lower Miocene to Late Pleistocene. Apparently, the lithological and tectonical settings within the Kendeng zone are varied. Therefore, some scientists consider there are three sub-zones in Kendeng, namely West, Middle and East. Within the Kendeng zone, the hominid and vertebrate fossils mostly come from the Pucangan and Kabuh formations, the former older than the latter. Lithological features of these formations are different across Central and East Java. In this paper, we will discuss the appearance of the Pucangan and Kabuh formations in Sangiran (Central Java), Ngawi and Mojokerto (East Java).

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SESSION A3

A3 Yi Seonbok

Yoo Yongwook

Kim Dongwan

Lee Jeongeun

Seoul National University

RECENT FINDINGS AT CHONGOKRI, KOREA

The age and context of the Acheulian-like handaxes in the Imjin River Basin in central Korea have been debated over the last three decades. First reported nearby the town of Chongok in 1978, it has been only a few years since there began to be obtained more or less concrete evidence directly indicative of their first and last appearance. So far, the earliest evidence is represented by the site of Jangsan-ri, where artifacts were laid within point-bar deposits of the ancient Imjin River long before the formation of the basalt plain on top of which lie many important sites such as Chongokri. While the lava flows appear to have occurred sometime after 400 ka, more evidence is needed to conclude exactly when they began and ended, providing a source of confusion and speculations about the age of post-lava flow archaeological sites and artifacts. Handaxes in the basin are found with different chronostratigraphic and depositional contexts as sedimentation on top of the basalt had occurred for a prolonged period and ended shortly before the eruption of the so-called AT tephra from Kyushu at around 30~25ka. The 2000-2001 campaign at Chongokri resulted in the appearance of a claim of 300 ka for the age of all handaxes on top of the basalt. However, there is little hard evidence to support that the lowermost ‘cultural’ layer at Chongokri is 300 ka, not to mention whether handaxes do indeed exist at that level. In the mean time, the campaign of 2004 produced confusing results that the bulk of the artifact-bearing deposit could be of OIS 6 or only as old as OIS 4 to 3. In either case, there is a possibility that handaxes manufacture could have continued as late as ca. 40~30 ka. Currently, a large-scale salvage excavation began since October, 2008, which would be completed by the end of 2009. With about 2,000 pieces of lithics recovered by July 2009, there has been obtained so far the largest single palaeolithic collection in Korea. Artifacts include many large and small pieces, including some handaxe- and cleaver-like pieces and polyhedrals made of quartz and quartzite. With vigorous analysis of both artifacts and artifact-bearing deposits, we may be able to say in near future more details about the site formation process at Chongokri as well as the nature of the lithic assemblage.

A3 Wang Youping

Department of Archaeology, Peking University

UPPER PALAEOLITHIC INTERACTIONS IN NORTH CHINA

There are more and more microlithic remains have been found in North China during the last several decades. These discoveries demonstrated that the boat-shaped core and the conical core microlithic technology first emerged the southern part of Shanxi Province nearly 25000B.P. . The traces of the boat-shaped core and the conical core microlithic technology around later times were also found all over areas ranging from The central part of Henan, southern part of Shandong, northern part of Jiangsu to northern part of Hebei. Even the Nihewan Basin, in the northwest of Hebei, there are not just the wedge-shaped core, the boat-shaped core and the conical core technology have been found too. The boat-shaped and conical cores first appeared in the east part of the basin by about 18000 -20000 BP, and the wedge-shaped core technology dominated the middle and west regions from about 15000 to 10000BP. Unlike that the wedge-shaped technology suddenly disappeared at the beginning of the Holocene, the conical core continued to be found in some early Neolithic sites. The special development and distribution of the microlithic technology in the Nihewan basin as well as North China should closely relate with the Upper Palaeolithic interactions in this huge region.

A3 KATO, Hirofumi

Hokkaido University

MEDVEDEV, G.I.

LIPNINA, E.A.

Irkutsk state University

SATO, Takao

Keio University

YOSHIDA, Kunio

Tokyo University

WANG, XiaoKun

Chinese Renmin University

TECHNOLOGICAL EVOLUTION, ADAPTATION AND EMERGENCE OF UPPER PALEOLITHIC IN NORTHEAST ASIA.

In this presentation, we will discuss the circumstances Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) in the Northeast Asia. Specially, I will focus on EUP in East Siberia and Hokkaido Island, and compare with techno-complex of EUP in the both area. The emergence of EUP in NE Asia is characterized by the blade reduction technique from prismatic core. We can find widely this techno-complex from Siberia-Mongol zone to Northern China, Korean peninsula and Japanese archipelago. On the other hand, preceding Middle Paleolithic (MP) complex in this area are shown diversified situations, except for West part of South Siberia and Mongolian plateau. This situation is more characterized in the east side of coastal area of North Pacific. As West part of Eurasia, Blade reduction techno-complex was widely spread across the Northeast Asia in the Upper Pleistocene. And this archaeological phenomenon was related with the emergence and dispersal of anatomically modern human and colonization to the Northeast Asia and New World. Although, it is difficult to recognize this technological change from MP to EUP as the simplistic unilinear technological change or replacement. In recent year, we have seen various type techno-complex in the period 40 to 30 ka ¹⁴C BP, the Baikal zone of Eastern Siberia and Hokkaido island. Many archaeological collection from both area shows the gradual adaptation process to the terrestrial environment and fauna．We can consider this situation as technological selection and application by a population in NE Asian EUP.

　

A3 Zhang, Xiaoling

Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing

A functional study of lithic artifacts from an upper Paleolithic Site in northern China

This study focuses on the functions of an Upper Paleolithic stone tool assemblage to provide interpretations of the adaptative strategy of early human from the Nihewan Basin in northern China. The Low-power Use-wear analysis was employed to microscopically examine selected lithic specimens from three localities of the Hutouliang site. From use-wear data combined with the evidence from typology, ethnoarchaeology, and replicate experiments, the study suggests that the use of stone tools at the site tends to become specialization and standardization. The data from integrated analysis for Localities 73101, 65309 and 72117, suggest that there are three types of site functions. It is suggested that the Hutouliang occupants were inclined to select sessional base camps, making full use of all available resources as collectors.

A3 Chen, Hong

Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University

CULTURAL ADAPTATIONS TO THE LATE PALEOLITHIC: REGIONAL VARIAVILITY OF HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN SOUTHERN SHANXI, CHINA

This study will attempt to compare human responses to changing environments during the Late Paleolithic period in Southern Shanxi, China. Three Paleolithic entities, Xiachuan, Xueguan and Shizitan will be selected for the regional scale comparison from adaptation perspective. In order to figure out the patterns and the tendency of their tech-economy and subsistence, both typo-technological analysis and microwear analysis for lithic artifacts will be involved. We believe that such a comparison may reveal the adaptive strategies of different prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups, whether they were same or not, and may explore the possible factors including external and internal ones. More over, we also may evaluate the concept of adaptation for interpreting the human behavior.

A3 Peng Fei

IVPP, Chinese Academy of Sciences

A REPORT ON THE 2007 EXCAVATION OF THE RANJIALUKOU PALEOLITHIC SITE IN THE THREE GORGES, CHINA

The paper introduces the excavation in Ranjialukou site which is located in Fengdu country, Three Gorges region, south of China. The stone tool assemblage of the site not only reserves the Pebble Tool Industry in South China, but also bears the unique characteristic of high percentage of flakes and flake tools of the lithic assemblage.

A3 LI Yinghua

Department of Archaeology, Wuhan University, P.R.China

ANALYSIS ON THE COGNITION AND THE BEHAVIOR OF THE MAN OF THE GUANYINDONG SITE

How to explore the cognition and the behavior of the prehistoric man is always an interesting theme for the archaeologists. From 1940’, the French prehistorians developed the technological method to study the lithic industries, which opened a new perspective for the study of lithic artifacts. In the 1980’, they substituted the concept of chaîne opératoire for two different concepts: techno-cognition and techno-economy, which enable us not only to reveal the technical knowledge applied in the production of stone tools but also to reconstruct the behavior of the prehistoric man. The lithic artifacts of the Guanyindong site are made of good raw materials and contains some variability, which characterized this site as a representative in the south-west of China. The technological method being never applied on the lithic industries of China, the study of the lithic industry of the Guanyindong site represent a tentative research. The technological analysis revealed that the débitage system of the Guanyindong site is essentially different of that of Levallois, which are applied in large scale in Europe, in Near-east and in Africa during Middle Paleolithic. These two débitage systems reflect two distinct modes of conceiving of the chaîne opératoire and two different behaviors in the processes of producing the stones tools.

A3 Wang Yunfu

The Laboratory of Scientific Archaeology, Chongqing Normal University, China

ANALYSIS OF BONE SURFACE MODIFICATIONS FROM HUANGLONG CAVE SITE, HUBEI PROVINCE, CHINA

Since 2004 seven teeth of Homo sapiens sapiens dated about 100 thousand years ago and many mammal fossils, associated with stone and bone artifacts were uncovered at Huanglong Cave site at Yunxi Country in Hubei province, China. The materials researched here were selected from the bone fractures found here. First, samples were examined carefully with integrated observing technologies including the use of optic microscope, digital microscope with super-depth of field, and three-dimension scanner. Original agents of surface modifications on samples were identified. Secondly, based on the identified results, sample were classified and quantified. The research results supported the conclusion advanced previously that bone deposits at Huanglong Cave site were situ ones, and showed that hunting and butchering activities were mainly responsible for the formation of the deposit. Careful butchering work were performed in the cave after games were obtained in the surrounding areas and concentrated in the cave. Large proportion of cut marks were for the defleshing activities, some cut marks on the epiphysis sections and most chopping marks were the results of carcass disassembling activities, and the percussion marks were involved in marrow eating and bone artifacts manufacturing activities. In addition, animal oriented modifications associated with the Human oriented modifications reflected that carnivores and rodents also made use of some of the bone assemblage.

A3 Wu Xianzhu

The Laboratory of Scientific Archaeology, Chongqing Normal University, China

THREE DIMENSIONAL SURVEYING OF A PREHISTORIC CAVE SITE & DIGITAL MODEL ANALYSIS OF BONE SURFACE MODIFICATIONS

In the present archaeology study of prehistory cave sites, there is a direction towards more elaboration not only in field diggings, but also in later indoor analysis. All interpretations about archaeology records should be based on accurate surveying results. At the Bailong Cave site in Hubei province, China, researchers collected three-dimension data by means of new surveying instruments including high resolution laser surveying system and electronic total station, and created digital models of the site, providing not only dynamical viewpoints, but also special graphics according to the different research demands. By analysis of three-dimension models, a series of new opinions were developed: In cave the concentration area of activities was on grounds with relatively large space. Simulated illumination analysis by digital model supported the opinion that the hominids might use fire for illumination in the cave. The analysis of digital model inclination implied that depositions perhaps came from the deeper cave. Apparently three-dimensional surveying provided an important reference to reveal the causes and process of prehistory cave sites formations. Furthermore, this method will also play a significant role in academic exchanges and public sharing of archaeology productions.

Analysis of modifications on the surfaces of bone fossils is an interesting point in the taphonamic researching at all the times. In further researching works about Bailong Cave site in Hubei prvince, China, human marks on the surface of animal fossils were analyzed through three dimensions reconstruction and isoline analysis, which enable researchers observe and measure in three dimensions, providing a lot of information as follows: the formation of modifications, the tools that produced modifications, the cutting edge, movement and micro-abrasion of the tools.

A3 Imamura, Keiji

Department of Archaeology, University of Tokyo

PITFALL HUNTING IN THE UPPER PALAEOLITHIC AND JOMON PERIODS IN JAPAN

The use of pitfalls for hunting in the Jomon period has been proposed as a result of my excavation of many deep pits at Kirigoka, Yokohama City, in 1971. Soon after my discovery, I entered into a controversy with those who would not accept the proposed function of the pits. These dissenting opinions have since disappeared. The basic background of the settlement of the debate is the surprise increase in the number such pits unearthed and in the amount of information related thereto. At least 100,000 pits from several thousand sites have been excavated and reported all over Japan, with the exception of Okinawa. More than 10,000 pits have been excavated in only one housing development area: Tama New Town, in the suburbs of Tokyo. Jomon pitfalls are characterized by an oval shape and traces of many kinds of devices to deprive the fallen animals of their mobility. Judging from the topography around the pits, we can conclude that the aim was to make the animals trip and fall into the pits. The Jomon people must have patrolled the areas around the pits and checked the game therein. There are many cases in which pits were dug in a row, possibly with interval fences. Examination of the topography and ethnographic literatures suggest that such pit systems were also designed to make the animals trip and fall into the pits when they tried to pass through the intermittent fences. This method was eminently suitable for the sedentary life of the Jomon people. The main types of game are thought to have been wild boar and deer.

Pitfalls of the earlier period, i.e., the Upper Palaeolithic, were first unearthed during the 1990s. Their locations and dates are remarkably restricted. So far, a large number of pits have been discovered in the geological formations, dating back around 28,000 years, on the slopes of Mt. Hakone and Mt. Ashitaka in central Japan. Several archaeologists have expressed the opinion that the purpose of these pits was, like those of the Jomon period, to trip the wild boars and deer. Palaeolithic pitfalls, however, have many features which are quite different from those of the Jomon period. The supposedly highly mobile lifestyle of the Palaeolithic people is also contradictory to that hypothesis. There is only one site, Hatsunegahara on Mt. Hakone, where a whole pitfall system from the Palaeolithic has been successfully reconstructed. This pitfall system is composed of 100 pits arranged into three rows traversing a narrow part of a mountain ridge, which is the gentle volcanic slope remaining after erosion by parallel valleys. This pitfall system is far greater than any Jomon system. The three-row configuration must have been designed to catch in the latter rows those animals which managed to pass through the first rows. So, there were probably no fences between the pits, because the animals being driven by hunters would not run toward visible obstacles. Other than this feature, Palaeolithic pitfalls differ from Jomon pits in the bigger sizes, round forms, and lack of any device to fix the fallen game. The concept behind Paleolithic pitfalls must have been quite different.

Recently, the second Tou-Mei speed highway was constructed across the foot of Mt. Ashitaka. Prior to this, the Institute of Buried Cultural Properties of Shizuoka Prefecture carried out archaeological researches along the planned route of the road. The possible existence of archaeological sites was checked at many locations down to layers as old as 30,000 years. This investigation ascertained that different landforms were selected for the Palaeolithic and the Jomon pitfalls. The results clearly indicated that the Jomon pitfalls were constructed on widely varying landforms such as gently sloping hills and narrow steep ridges. On the other hand, all Palaeolithic pitfalls were dug on top of flat and gently inclined ridges, both sides of which were steep cliffs eroded by valleys. The pits were arranged in one or several rows across the width of the ridge. This means that Jomon pitfalls were made in any location, as long as animals would come there. Palaeolithic pitfalls, however, were made only in places where drive hunting down on the ridge could be done. Palaeolithic pitfalls were used for drive hunting by humans who, while normally leading a nomadic life in small groups, would sometimes gather into a large group to participate in collaborative drive hunting. So-called ‘circular blocks’, in which clusters of stone tools and flakes are distributed in a circle, are known from only 35,000 to 28,000 years ago out of Palaeolithic Japan. They are thought to be the remains of places where many groups gathered into a large circle. Obsidian flakes from several different sources have been found distributed in separate portions of the circle. It is believed that, while such groups normally circulated along their own routes, they gathered regularly at one place, seasonally. One of the purposes of these gatherings must have been collaborative drive hunting. In this type of hunting, people were divided into several groups: one to drive down the animals, one to prevent the animals from running astray, and one to hide near the pit system or other kind of terminal device. The last group probably killed the animals immediately after they stumbled into the pits and before they escaped. If this conjecture is accurate, the game could have consisted of many different kinds of animals, including large ones such as elephants and bison.

SESSION A4

A4 Anoykin, A.A.

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS, Novosibirsk, Russia

THE OLDEST LOWER PALEOLITHIC MICRO-INDUSTRIES OF EURASIA: NEW DATA

The Rubas-1 site is situated on the right bank of the Rubas River in Dagestan (Russia) where in 2006-2009 artifacts were found in a gravel-pebble layer (layer 5). This layer appears to have formed in the breaker zone of the ancient beach during the initial stage of sea transgression (Upper Pliocene). Gravel-pebble material from the lower layer consists mainly of limestone, sandstone, and (rare) angular flint fragments. Some of those flint fragments were defined as artifacts. In general, the Lower Paleolithic technocomplex of the Rubas 1 site is characterized by small artifact size (<4 cm), poorly expressed typological features, and variability of tool shapes. The preliminary age estimate of the sediments and specific features of major categories of typologically distinct artifacts makes it possible to attribute the Rubas 1 collection to the small tool industry of the early Lower Paleolithic, potentially one of the oldest in Russia. The Rubas-1 artifacts testify to a long coexistence and development of Lower Paleolithic micro-industries in Eurasia. They provide new data to the discussion on the existence of cultural differences at the earliest stages of human prehistory, of early human occupation processes in Eurasia and the origin and development of the earliest small tool industries. These industries seem to have originated as early as 2 million years ago in Africa, later spreading into the Levant, Central Asia and China. Generally, these technocomplexes have a wide chronological range from 2.3 to 0.3 million years ago. Given the chronological estimate for the origin of small tool industries in the Caucasus, the Lower Paleolithic artifacts from the Rubas-1 site can be linked to one of the earliest human migrations from Africa to Eurasia and further dissemination of this cultural tradition into China via the territories of Central Asia and Siberia.

A4 Krivoshapkin, A., Zwyns, N.

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS, Novosibirsk, Russia

THE INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGICAL BURST IN THE MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC OF UZBEKISTAN: A REVISION OF INTERPRETATIVE DOGMA

Recently, much attention has been paid to the bladelet and micro-blade technology, mainly of the Early Upper Paleolithic assemblages in Europe and the Near East. Described by some authors as a part of the Modern Human Behavioural Package, the production of small-sized laminar elements seems to appear sporadically in Africa during the MSA, during the early phases of the Middle Paleolithic in the Levant and during OIS 4 in Western Europe. However, the conditions for the origin and development of this technology in Central Asia remain poorly documented. By describing new evidence from the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transitional sequence of the Obi-Rakhmat site (Western Tian Shan, Republic of Uzbekistan), we aim to address issues such as the timing of the first appearance of the innovative bladelet reduction sequence in this area and understanding their status in techno-economical terms. We also discuss their significance within the framework of various transitional scenarios.

A4 Rybin, Evgeny,

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Novosibirsk, Russia

Vasiliev, S.G.

Transbaikal Regional Museum, Chita, Russia

SETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN THE EARLY UPPER PALEOLITHIC OF TRANSBAIKALIA: THE CASE OF THE TOLBAGA SITE

The Tolbaga site, dated to c. 35,000-25,000 BP, is one of the most important early Upper Paleolithic sites in the eastern Baikal Region (Trans-Baikal). In this paper, we present analyses of possible correlations between the ways of raw material transportation to the site, knapping techniques, and utilization of stones and bones at the site. Also, spatial arrangements of the site and consumption of game are described. On the basis of correlations between the subsistence strategies of early humans and stone utilization at Tolbaga, an inference has been made that the subsistence strategy of the early population of the site was based on repeated raids over the area beneficial for seasonal hunting activities.

A4 Kolobova, K., Flas, Damien

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS, Novosibirsk, Russia

IN QUEST OF PREDECESSORS OF THE UZBEKISTAN UPPER PALEOLITHIC

The territory of Uzbekistan has played an important role in Paleolithic archeology since the discovery of a Neanderthal burial at the Teshik-Tash rockshelter in 1938. At that time the site marked the eastern boundary of the Neandertal world. At the present time almost one hundred Paleolithic sites have been found in Uzbekistan proving that humans occupied the region since at least 800,000 years ago. In any case, there are still questions about the reconstruction of the complete Stone Age cultural sequence of the region is still questionable. The main reason for this is the strikingly uneven cultural/chronological distribution of the Paleolithic sites. While an overwhelming majority of Paleolithic sites are attributed to the Middle Paleolithic, very few Upper Paleolithic sites were known in the region. Moreover, their diverse lithic assemblages made it impossible to discern convincingly any cultural alignment, origin, and further evolution of the regional Upper Paleolithic. Given the mosaic nature of the lithic evidences, the only presumptive conclusion was to place the Uzbekistan Upper Paleolithic within the so-called "China-Siberian Paleolithic oecumena". This paper is a discussion of the new results obtained from ongoing Upper Paleolithic field research in the region.

A4 Diab, Mark C.

Laboratory of Human Evolution, Department of Integrated Biosciences, The University of Tokyo

AN EVALUATION OF HUMAN IMPACTS ON PLEISTOCENE MEGAFAUNAL EXTINCTION AND EXTIRPATION IN JAPAN

Issues of extinction, decreasing biodiversity, and human impacts on global resources have been the focus of significant multidisciplinary research of late. For the distant past, research on Pleistocene megafaunal extinctions has been one of the most poignant debates in the historical sciences for over 100 years. Although these ancient extinctions no doubt took different forms from those of the recent past, the general nature of extinction and extirpation of plant and animal species is due to similar contingencies such as environmental changes, internal demographic change and stochasticity, and possible human impacts. In island settings (i.e. New Zealand, Mangaia) it is clear that humans were central in the rapid extirpation and then extinction of indigenous megafauna. This review addresses megafaunal extirpation and extinction, mainly Palaeoloxodon/Naumann’s elephant, Sinomegaceros/giant deer and Bison specific to the marine isotope stages 3-2 and 2-1 transitions in Japan. The role of Palaeolithic human hunters as catalysts for extinction or as having wrought the dénouement to megafauna during this transitional period is discussed in light of the archaeological record for this region.

A4 Rolland, Nicolas

University of Victoria, B.C., Canada

THE ‘DUAL INHERITANCE’, EARLY HOMO ADAPTIVE PARAMETERS, AND THE INITIAL COLONIZATION OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN ASIA

The colonization of Eurasia was feasible because of bio-cultural antecedents in Subsaharan Africa. The ‘dual inheritance’ included a partly zoophagous dietary shift, while retaining the ancestral primate omnivorous propensities, with versatile plant exploitation repertoires. These combined with reliance on tool making and tool use. The consequences of this acquired carnivorous ‘vocation’ included eurytopic dispersal propensities, ‘ecological polymorphism’, and a ‘natural history intelligence’, also diagnostic of social carnivores. These adaptive parameters and ‘dual inheritance’ allowed early Homo expansion across a variety of ecosystems and ecotones in Eurasia, by exploiting with flexibility food resources at various levels of the trophic pyramid, according to habitat circumstances. Among outside issues in the Early Pleistocene hominid colonization of Asia remain the questions of whether (1) East Asia was settled initially from Western Asia, directly through Central Asia, expanding then from North to South China, or (2) whether an alternative dispersal path was involved, from South and Southeast Asia into South China, then into North China, and subsequently, from there to Central Asia. Another related issue is whether ancient hominids remained adaptively confined to open grassland habitats, or actually exploited a variety of ecosystems and ecotone situations, implying a broader range of biome colonization. Evidence form geochronology, biogeography, Palaeolithic occurrences distribution, and the ‘dual inheritance’ heuristic concept, presently give more support for hominid expansions along Tropical Asia, spreading northward subsequently, and exploiting a diversity of ecosystems and habitats.

A4 Sinha, Prakash

University of Allahabad, India

CHANGES IN TECHNOLOGY, SUBSISTENCE STRATEGIES AND BEHAVIORAL PATTERN DURING THE LATE UPPER PLEISTOCENE IN SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST ASIA: A MICROWEAR ANALYSIS

The archaeological literature reveals that the exploitation of plants and grains had become an important activity of man around 12,000-10,000 years ago. To achieve his goals, in different environments, he adopted different strategies – changes in lithic technology, tool kit composition, and hafting of tools. Artifacts reported from a number of Indian and Southeast Asian sites have been analyzed using low and/or high power microscopy. Various stages of behavioral change have been observed in late Upper Pleistocene to Holocene contexts that ultimately led to the refinement in and advancement of economic strategies. Adaptation is a process of behavioral change in time and space. To retrieve information about changes related to adaptation, the use of microwear analysis is perhaps one of the best-known methods.

A4 Sinha, Prakash

Chauhan, DK

University of Allahabad, India

PHYTOLITH STUDY: RECONSTRUCTION OF PALAEOENVIRONMENT AND CRAFT ACTIVITIES

The study of human behavior would be incomplete without the reconstruction of man’s environment. Interactions between man and his environment may leave behind evidence in one form or another. Retrieving such tangible records and the rationale behind their creation is one of the primary goals of archaeology. The study of archaeological soil samples recovered from the excavations at Dhanuhi Rock-shelter, a late Upper Palaeolithic site in the Rewa district, Madhya Pradesh, India, has revealed interesting data on the potential and significance of phytolith study in reconstructing the material used in different craft activities carried out by the inhabitants at the site. It has been suggested that the activity areas changed through time and space. Botanical data on the phytoliths corroborate the archaeological evidence. The spatial and temporal distribution patterns of phytoliths of different plants, their frequency distribution, and the seasonality of plants suggests that usually after reoccupation of the site, craft activities were rarely conducted in the same spot.

A4 Sharma, Sukanya

Dept. of Humanities and Social Sciences, Guwahati, India

HOMINID ADAPTATIONS IN PREHISTORIC NORTHEAST INDIA, WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE GARO HILLS

Northeast India is situated between two different environmental systems, the monsoonal tropics and the tropical rainforest zone. The regional ecology of Northeast India has had a major role in the growth and development of human culture in the area. Affinities between the Neolithic tools of Southeast Asia and Northeast India are very clear. But certain bifacial artifacts are also similar to certain Middle Paleolithic assemblages from other parts of India. Thus, there appears to be a synthesis of two types of cultural traits. These are conditions of adaptation indigenous to the region, and explain the relationship between prehistoric human behaviour and the observable archaeological record of the region. The archaeological record of the prehistoric inhabitants of Northeast India consists of stone tools and pottery. A careful observation of the tool making techniques and types of tools produced reveals the modes of adaptation developed by prehistoric man. Site setting is another important aspect to be considered to understand the adaptive strategies adopted by people. An archaeological site is a place of past human activity generally indicated by a concentration of artifacts and discarded materials. A site is also defined as a particular locale within a habitat, together with its immediate setting. We have to study the surroundings to understand the type of resources available. The types of resources govern the different modes of adaptation developed by the inhabitants of an area. The Garo Hills, the area chosen for study, have the highest concentration of prehistoric sites in Northeast India. The types of tools found in the area consist of ground and polished Neolithic celts, pebble tools, bifaces and flake tools. There are in-situ sites, sub-surface sites, and surface sites. In this paper an attempt has been made to understand the adaptive strategies developed by the prehistoric inhabitants of the area on the basis of site setting and the typo-technological analysis of the stone tools.

A4 Keates, Susan G.

SPATIAL-TEMPORAL RELATIVITY OF EASTERN ASIAN HOMO

The past two decades have witnessed an increasing number of absolute dates for Palaeolithic sites in Eastern Asia. This applies especially to China, the most site-rich region in the East. The dates and interpretations of the Pleistocene chronology directly affect hypotheses of the initial hominid colonisation of Eastern Asia. In this respect, the earliest sites, including Goudi in northern China, Yuanmou and Bose in southern China, and Sangiran and Modjokerto in Java, are among sites crucial for an understanding of hominid chronology and settlement pattern. Dates generated for modern human sites in East and Southeast Asia are also examined in order to trace the interrelationship between time of settlement and geographic spread.

A4 Tashak, Vasiliy

Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies, Ulan-Ude, Russia

TWO VARIANTS OF THE EARLY UPPER PALEOLITHIC BLADE INDUSTRIES IN WESTERN ZABAYKAL'YE

Nowadays there are two main points of view on the nature of the Zabaykal'ye Late Paleolithic (Republic of Buryatia, Russia). The first, which is shared by many researchers, was proposed in the 1930s. According to this, the Zabaykal'ye Paleolithic was interpreted as a monocultural process. It was assumed that the basis of the Zabaykal'ye Paleolithic technology was a stone industry in which stone tools were manufactured from whole stone pieces, including tools made on flakes. In the last quarter of the 20th century another main view was proposed. It suggested that the Zabaykal'ye Paleolithic includes two main ways of development, based on different techniques of knapping stone and using various types of flaked stone artifacts in the process of making stone tools: In the Tolbaga culture, blades and tools made on them were manufactured, while flakes and flake tools are characteristic of the Cunaley culture. Both industries of stone tool production were dated to the earlier stage of the Upper Paleolithic. The investigation of the Barun-Alan 1 site allowed researchers to put forward an idea about the various ways of the Zabaykal'ye Paleolithic development. The Barun-Alan 1 stone industry from the lower lithological stratum was based on the combination of prismatic and Levalloisian knapping techniques and macro-tools and micro-tools in the stone assemblage. Blade production in the 7th stratum of Barun-Alan 1 was based on the prismatic knapping technique and didn’t connect genetically with Levalloisian technology. Blade production of the Tolbaga culture developed from Levalloisian technology. Chronologically, the blade industry of the 7th stratum of Barun-Alan 1 precedes the Tolbaga culture. The majority of sites with the Tolbaga type industry are placed in the age range from c. 30,000 ka to c. 40,000 ka. The 7th stratum of the Barun-Alan 1 industry developed until c. 40,000 ka, and after that it was replaced by the Haengaeractae culture, known only at Barun-Alan 1 and two other sites nearby. Bifaces appeared in this industry, but prismatic knapping disappeared. Thus, the blade industries of the Barun-Alan 1 site and the Tolbaga type sites are not chronological stages of one cultural development, but are two independent ways of development in the Zabaykal'ye Paleolithic.

A4 Chauhan, Parth

Stone Age Institute, USA

RECONSIDERING LOWER PALEOLITHIC DISPERSALS FROM AFRICA TO ASIA

While we have made much progress in Old World paleoanthropology in recent decades, there is much that still eludes us. Instead of making headway with current issues, in some cases such as early Homo dispersals, we may perhaps be asking the wrong questions. The invention of Acheulean or Mode 2 technology in Africa and its subsequent expansion into Eurasia have been one such major topic of study for several decades. This paper discusses broad comparative attributes of Acheulean and Acheulean-like sites both west and east of the Movius Line including Africa, Europe, the Levant, the Indian subcontinent and East Asia. Key issues regarding the geographic demarcation and validity of the Movius Line and its evolutionary and behavioral implications are reconsidered in the context of recent discoveries. The associated paleoanthropological evidence is chronologically compared from major sites and regions to understand the nature of early Homo dispersals, ecological adaptations and technological strategies. For example, geographic boundaries of Mode 2 expansions and possible technological convergence are examined in relation to resource constraints and distribution within diverse ecotones. Other models for the dichotomy are also discussed. Rather than being viewed as mysterious Paleolithic phenomenon, the seemingly abnormal pattern of the presence and absence of Acheulean technology is perhaps better interpreted simply, as reflecting a ‘normal’ behavioral system of conditionally required Mode 2 technology in relation to fluctuating populations, specific subsistence strategies and consistent habitat preference. This presentation demonstrates that the Movius Line need not be viewed as a dichotomy between the two Lower Paleolithic technological traditions. As a related topic, Lower Paleolithic dispersals are discussed in a general comparative context between Oldowan and Acheulean evidence and current assumptions are confronted with alternate possibilities.

A4 Derevianko, A.P.

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Novosibirsk, Russia

THE MIDDLE TO UPPER PALEOLITHIC TRANSITION AND THE ORIGINS OF HOMO SAPIENS SAPIENS IN NORTHERN AND CENTRAL ASIA

The origins of humans of the physically modern type and the formation of the Upper Paleolithic culture are currently among the most challenging scientific problems. Available archaeological and paleoanthropological data make it possible to hypothesize on three main trajectories of the transition from the Middle to Upper Paleolithic. These are the African model of transition (Ater, Daban, etc.), the Eurasian model (characterized by the standardization of laminar reduction technique of both small and large artifacts), and the Chinese-Malayan model in Eastern and Southeastern Asia (characterized by flake removal from cores and producing tools on flakes and special blanks). Special features characterizing the transition from the Middle to the Upper Paleolithic in particular regions have been identified. Southern Siberia and Central Asia can be listed among such specific regions. During the past 25 years, many archaeological sites have been discovered and studied in a comparatively small area in the Altai Mountains of Southern Siberia, including multilayered and well-stratified cave and open-air sites. A multidisciplinary approach has obtained a whole array of data illustrating climatic fluctuations and features of flora and fauna throughout the Middle and Late Pleistocene. Research based on studies of more than 60 culture-bearing horizons has provided evidence of environmental and human cultural developments from c. 100,000-30,000 ka.

The Altai archaeological evidence for the terminal Middle Paleolithic (60,000-50,000 ka) suggests two major trends of lithic industry development: Kara-Bom and Karakol. Both trends were formed in the course of the long-term development of a single Middle Paleolithic industry without any impact from contiguous regions. Around 50,000 years ago, artifact types such as sub-prismatic, prismatic, and wedge-shaped cores, carinated tools, end-scrapers, burins, and many other features of Upper Paleolithic culture, including soft hammer flaking, emerged in the local lithic industries. The origins of these features can be traced to the Middle Paleolithic Altai cultures. Modern behavior patterns of the Altai population around 50,000-40,000 ka are illustrated by bone tools that include needle, awls, and hafts for composite tools and non-utilitarian items like globular and cylinder-shaped beads, and bone, stone, and shell pendants. A stratigraphic layer dating to c. 39-40 ka BP has yielded an amazing and unexpected find: a fragment of a stone bangle showing employment of several working techniques (sawing, drilling, grinding, and polishing). The available archaeological evidence shows that the Upper Paleolithic culture was formed on a local basis in the Altai around 50-40 ka. Research in the western and eastern regions of Lake Baikal as well as in Uzbekistan and Mongolia in Central Asia provides abundant data suggesting similar trends in the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition.

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SESSION A5

A5 Nguyen Lan Cuong

Nguyen Kim Thuy

Nguyen Mai Huong

Pham Minh Huyen

Institute of Archeology, Ha Noi, Viet Nam

THE FAUNA FOSSILS DISCOVERED AT MA TUYEN CAVE, MUONG KHUONG DISTRICT, LAO CAI PROVINCE (NORTH OF VIET NAM)

In May 2008, many fauna fossils were discovered on the walls and floor of the Ma Tuyen Cave in Muong Khuong district, Lao Cai province. Researchers of the Institute of Archaeology and the Lao Cai General Museum have conducted initial examinations of the remains and the upgrading of the cave has been postponed pending excavations.

The examinations show that there are twelve families of six orders in this cave including Primate, Proboscidae, Carnivore, Artiodactyla, Perissodactyla and Rodentia. Particularly, there are teeth fossils of both young and adult elephants of three species (Stegodon orientalis, Palaeoloxodon naumanni and Elephas indicus). The first two were present until the Pleistocene – one to some 10,000 years ago while the latter - Elephas indicus (also named Elephas maximus) lived up to the Holocene (10,000 years ago).

So far no trace of Pongo has been found but there are plenty of teeth fossils of Ailuropoda melanoleuca. Teeth fossils of rhinos, boars, deer, cows, horses, monkeys, wolves, and porcupines have also been discovered.

Lao Cai is the 14^th province in Vietnam with fauna fossils, the 4^th with Ailuropoda melanoleuca fossil, the 5^th with Palaeoloxodon teeth fossil, and the 6^th with Stegodon teeth fossil. The coming excavation is expected to discover fossils of Pongo, Homo sapiens and other animals.

A5 Bacon Anne-Marie

CNRS, UPR2147, Paris

Demeter Fabrice

MNHN, Paris

Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy

Institut of Archaeology, Hanoi

Vu The Long

Nguyen Thi Mai Huong

Institut of Archaeology, Hanoi

Sayavongkhamdy Tongsa

Ministry of Culture and Information, Vientiane

Duringer Philippe

University of Strasbourg

Shackelford Laura

University of Illinois, Urbana

Antoine Pierre-Olivier

University of Toulouse

Two new Pleistocene faunas from Vietnam and Laos and their contribution to the biochronological framework of the Indochinese province

We present two new fossil faunas, one of late Middle Pleistocene age from the Tam Hang site, Hua Pan Province in Laos, and one other of Late Pleistocene age from the Duoi U’Oi site, Hoà Binh province in Vietnam. The specimens consist of isolated teeth of middle to large-sized mammals: Artiodactyla (cervid, bovid, suid), Perissodactyla (rhinocerotid, tapirid), Proboscidea (elephantid, stegodontid), Carnivora (mustelid, canid, viverrid, felid, ursid), Rodentia (hystricid, murid), and Primates (cercopithecid, hylobatid, hominid). The two assemblages are compared to well-documented faunas (Yenchingkuo, Phnom Loang, Thum Wiman Nakin, Lang Trang), but also to some other hominid-bearing faunas (Tham Kuyen, Liujiang, Changyang) from the Indochinese province. Then, this study defines a biochronological framework for archaic and modern Homo sapiens in the region.

A5 Vadhana Subhavan

Sood Sangvichien Prehistoric Museum and Laboratory, Department of Anatomy Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University Bangkok

Homo erectus in Thailand: A comparative analysis of fossils uncovered from the site of Doi Ta Ka (Locality 1) Lampang Province, Northern Thailand.

The palaeoanthropological research on the fossil site of Doi Ta Ka (Locality 1), Hat Pu Dai Village, Tambol Na Sang, Khok Kha District, Lampang Province, Northern Thailand, where four cranial fragments provisionally identified as Homo erectus were discovered by Somsak Pramankij in 1999. The finds are associated with mammalian fauna including the hominoids Pongo (orang utan) and Gigantopithecus, as well as various other extinct mammals, including sabre-toothed cat, hyena, giant panda, suid and cervid (Subhavan, 2007). In 1891, the first early human fossils were found in Asia by Eugene Dubois in Java, Indonesia consisting of a calotte, femur, teeth and other skeletal remains (Sémah et al., 1990). These were named Pithecanthropus erectus by Dubois (1894) but later classed with subsequent discoveries from Java and China as Homo erectus. Research in both Indonesia and China has a long history, including many significant finds. Prehistoric stone tools have also been discovered in Thailand by H.R. van Heekeren (1947). Numerous recent finds of typologically early tools have now been made by Somsak Pramankij between 1980 and 1994, indicating that Thailand was clearly inhabited by early hominids. These discoveries suggest that Southeast Asia should be an important region outside Africa for systematic palaeoanthropological research particularly because of its geographical situation between Indonesia and China where artifacts and hominid fossils are well known. Thus, it is likely that many more early hominid fossils and their artifacts await discovery in datable contexts in Thailand. The research seeks to develop palaeoanthropological research in Thailand by beginning with work on the Doi Ta Ka fossils and with excavation of in situ deposits.

A5 Kaifu, Y.

National Museum of Nature and Science, Tokyo

HOMO ERECTUS FROM NGANDONG (JAVA): IMMIGRANTS FROM THE MAINLAND OR DESCENDANTS OF AN INSULAR ENDEMIC SPECIES?

Homo erectus was undoubtedly present in the wide area of mainland and island Southeast Asia, but currently a substantial collection of their fossils are known only from Java, Indonesia. Then, what does the evidence from the latter tell us about the former? Homo erectus fossils from the late Pleistocene site of Ngandong, Java, are directly relevant to this question. There are two major hypotheses regarding the phylogenetic position of Ngandong Homo erectus. One supposes that they were descendants of earlier Javanese Homo erectus known from Sangiran, Trinil, and other sites, which evolved under a relatively isolated geographic location. The other claims that the population represented by Ngandong belongs to a different clade or evolutionary lineage from chronologically earlier Javanese Homo erectus, and is thus emigrants from outside Java. This paper reviews recent cladistic and craniometric studies of Javenese Homo erectus, and addresses the reasons why the latter hypothesis is not supported.

A5 Thongcharoenchaikit, Cholawit

Institut de Paléontologie humaine, Muséum National d’histoire Naturelle, Paris

MORPHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF ROCKER JAWS IN PREHISTORIC POPULATIONS IN THAILAND

This study aims an attempt to investigate the morphological variation of the rocker jaws and/or if there is any biological relatedness among population groups by employing different methodological approaches currently used for the study of mandibles and teeth. We concentrate here on the comparisons of human remains recovered from Thailand only, to examine if differences can be seen between Upper Pleistocene – Lower Holocene fossils and larger series of specimens from later archaeological contexts; the results from the Principal Component Analyses suggest that there is a change in term of corpus thickness of the mandibular body. However, this is also limited by the measurements we were able to record due to the preservation of the samples and different methods and techniques employed for this study. Only partial datasets are available and can be used for comparison. We suggest here that further research should include larger samples, which will allow to evaluate the presence of potential correlations between rocker jaw and measurements (size and shape of the mandibles), as well as the non metric morphological variation in order to understand the significance of such morphological features in reconstructing ancient populations history.

A5 Luu T. P.

Institute of Geophysics, Vietnamese Academy for Science & Technology

Ellwood B.B.

Department of Geology & Geophysics, Louisiana State University, USA

Nguyen K.

Institute of Archaeology, Vietnamese Academy of Social Science, Vietnam

USING MAGNETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY METHOD TO STUDY CON MOONG CAVE

For 20 years or so magnetic susceptibility (MS) measurements of cave sediments from archaeological sites have been used as a paleoclimate proxy. This method is based on the argument that the MS of cave sediments results from active climate processes outside caves, causing variations in magnetic properties of the sediments ultimately accumulating inside of caves. Once deposited, those materials are preserved, and their stratigraphy provides a climate proxy that can be extracted. Here, we have collected and measured the MS for 132 samples through a 3.3 m stratigraphic section in Con Moong Cave, Thanh Hoa province of Vietnam. This cave has previously been excavated by archaeologists at the University of Hanoi and 14C ages as well as cultural level information is available for the cave. MS results have been compared with the composite reference section (CRS) developed for southern European archaeological cave sites. There are 6 MS zones from Con Moong Cave that we correlate to the European CRS reflecting similar climatic patterns as those observed in Europe. Much of the sediment collected represents the Younger Dryas cold interval (MS zone SA14). The data from Con Moong Cave indicate that within the Younger Dryas event there were five MS sub-zones, with two of these (SA14d and 14b) representing brief periods of climate recovery during the Younger Dryas event.

A5 Nguyen Khac Su

Vietnamese Institute of Archaeology

LATE PLEISTOCENE - EARLY HOLOCENE CULTURAL CHANGES THROUGH THE STRATIGRAPHY OF CON MOONG CAVE

The site of Con Moong is situated in Thanh Hoa province, at 147m above sea level. The site has been excavated two times in 1976 and 2008 respectively. The stratum of the site extends 3.6m below the surface, encompassing 10 layers. On the basis of the prehistoric artifacts, the stratum can be divided into three different cultural deposits:

The cultural deposit I (layer 9) is characterized by lime clay which comprises mountainous snails (Cyclophorus), animal bone remains, kitchen vestiges and burials. Stone pebble tools recovered were crudely manufactured, including such primary typologies as side chopper, end chopper, quarter pebble tool, flake tools, bone point and so on, which are typically representative of the Sonvian – an Upper Paleolithic culture of 17000 to 14000 BP. This deposit also contains the fern pollen of Polypodiaceae and Cyatheaceae.

The cultural deposit II (layers 6 and 7) contains, apart from the lithic tool types seen in the cultural deposit I, several other types of artifacts, for example, almond-shaped tools, disc-shaped tools, Sumatraliths, short axes, long axses bone points, shell scrapers and so on. These tool types characterize the period of typical Hoabinhian in Early Neolithic dated from 14000 to 12000 BP.

The cultural deposit III (layers 2, 3 and 4) is characterized by the appearance of fresh water snails (Antimelania) and oysters (Sinohyriopsis cumingii, Lanceolaria oxynaia and Meretrix meretrix). Besides the lithic tool types listed in the lower deposits, new ones include edge-ground axes, bone points, shell scrapers and pottery, which distinctively represent the Bac Son culture with the dates ranging from 12000 to 7000 BP. On the surface of Con Moong cave, artifacts of the Da But culture aged from 7000 to 6500 BP have also found.

In the cultural deposits II and III, there is a great amount of the pollen of families such as Chenopodiaceae, Leguminosae, Rubiaceae, Myricaceae, Meliaceae, Fagaceae and Poaceae. It is likely that the species of Leguminosae and Oryza sativa found in the cultural deposit III were domesticated.

A5 Nor Khairunnisa Bt Talib

Centre for Archaelogical Research Global, University Science Malaysia, Penang

Recent excavation in Paleolithic open site at Bukit Bunuh, Lenggong, Perak, Malaysia

Bukit Bunuh is situated in Lenggong Perak, which is part of meteorite crater formed around 1.83 million years ago. As a result from this event, Bukit Bunuh had marked a new era for Paleolithic study in Malaysia. Recent excavation in Bukit Bunuh found a stone tool workshop, based on artifact association. The impact of meteorite resulted in a formation of variety of raw material such as suevite, chert, quartz and quartzite. These material found in Bukit Bunuh are different from others open site in Lenggong, which are dominant with quartz and quartzite. Prehistoric people of Bukit Bunuh acquired these raw materials by quarrying method. Artifact association shows the technique of stone tool production which includes direct percussion, indirect percussion and edge trimming. These techniques are comparable with Kota Tampan. Unlike Bukit Bunuh, Kota Tampan shows an evidence of river pebble. Despite the different way of obtaining raw materials, both sites show same technique in stone tool production. Palynological study also shows that Paleolithic people of Bukit Bunuh has adapted to the lake environment.

A5 Somsak Pramankij

Bangkok, Thailand

THE COMPARISON OF RAW MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES OF PALAEOLITHIC TOOLS BETWEEN ASIA, AFRICA AND EUROPE

Human beings, not like any other species, devoid of claws or fearsome teeth, to attach and kill their prey. In order to live, one of the principal characteristics that distinguish man from animals is his capacity of fashion a natural object and uses it for a pre-determined purpose. Stone, bone or horn which have been modified for purpose are known as artifacts and can be identified by certain revealing features. Most artifacts are clearly tools or weapons which have been designed to give to the user capabilities that he dose not naturally possess. Major evolutionary development separate mankind from the apes. Adaptation to bipedal walking is the principal structural change, but changes in behaviour, are even more far-reaching. Ape and human hands are similar, but the long and mobile thumb is one of man’s most useful acquisitions.

Most of the raw materials we find in Asia and Southeast Asia, especially in Thailand are pebbles (quartzite), which is different from flint or obsidian found in Europe and America. So the technique is not the same. One reason is that we cannot rely on the literature about truly method, specific for quartzite technique. Then we made an experimental for comparative study. On account of the capacity in making artificial stone tools (replica), and is widely recognized as a stone tools expert. By using a pebble which is abundant in Thailand, with a suitable shape to hold in the hands. The shape depends on the type of stone tools, some are massive, and some are flat. We chose one type of the original Paleolithic tool – Type 9 Thick Triangular which made from a massive pebble, chipped on both sides which brings the end touch together and gives an acute angle, presumed use is for hunting and picking. The author held the hammer-stone in one hand and the pebble in another hand. After examine for the point to strike, with full force, then used the hammer hitting at that point. One flake broke off. For Paleolithic tool about 10-20 strikes are required for the basic shape. The flakes have sizes from big to middle. From the experimental study we made the same type compare very well with the original one. We can also understand the significance of the breaking surface on stone which different from nature. We believe that study by experimental work is more practical than study from pictures in the text book.

Centre for Archaelogical Research Global, University Science Malaysia, Penang

A5 Phan Thanh Bang

Service for Culture, Sports and Tourism of Kon Tum)

THE HABITAT OF THE PREHISTORIC PEOPLE IN THE NORTHERN PLATEAU

Situated in the mountain range of Ngok Linh, the topography of Kon Tum province is characterized by a number of wide valleys, low hills and mountains, and a dense network of streams and rivers. Although there is no cave in the location, the general habitat is still viewed to be ideal for the prehistoric inhabitants in that numerous century-old trees and thick forest could have become an abundant food supply terrestrially and aquatically for the local people.

Until today, the prehistoric picture of Kon Tum province has been clearly described, from which we have reasons to change our view on Kon Tum – a high land in the past. We have already discovered a system of archaeological sites, particularly constructed the archaeological map of Kon Tum in 2005, on which 58 stone-age sites divided into 4 habitation groups have been identified.

Given all these archaeological discoveries, we have a foundation for new perception on the prehistoric culture of Kon Tum. First of all, it is the way that the prehistoric residents grouped (inter-villages according to Associate Prof. Nguyen Khac Su) along two banks of big rivers, which are often called villages. Next, the prehistoric people’s living places are also functioned as their workshop sites for stone tool production and as their burial grounds. Their subsistence economy is built from a combination of hunting, gathering, manufacturing tool, exchanging products, practising early agriculture as well as doing metallurgy. Further, the Kon Tum prehistoric inhabitant society was organized at a certain level with internal labour division. They possessed an abundant spiritual life that can be described via the technology of making lithic tools, decorating motifs and red orches on pottery, and via the presence of multiple types of jar, bowl, bead, bracelet, earing, quartz ornaments and so on. Their spiritual world was also expressed through the grave goods, and their thought about the odd numbers via the artifacts recovered in the burials (via examining the artefact collections in the Kon Tum museum).

The Kon Tum prehistoric people’s living environment on the low land is frequently preferred, where water supply is available. For example, their sites are primarily distributed along such big rivers as Dak Bla, Dak Droong, Dak Po Ko, and at the confluences of the big streams and those listed rivers.