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Technological behavior of the early Late Pleistocene archaic humans at Lingjing (Xuchang, China)
- Source :
- Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences. 11:3477-3490
- Publication Year :
- 2019
- Publisher :
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2019.
-
Abstract
- The period approximating 100 ka relates to Middle Paleolithic or Middle Stone Age technological behaviors that are generally characterized by prepared core technology, an expanding range of retouched tools, and the novel exploitation and sourcing of raw materials. As opposed to other regions of the world, the technological features of this period in China are deeply debated and remain unclear. Presently, it is suggested that Chinese lithic technology during this period is marked by the continuation of mode 1 artifacts that are characterized by simple cores, flakes, and tools that lack standardization. Here, we present a lithic assemblage associated with the discovery of two archaic human crania at the Lingjing site, securely dated to ~ 125–90 ka. A detailed analysis of stone artifacts shows increased technological advancement of the Lingjing humans during this period, including bi-conical discoidal core reduction strategies, discrete small-sized tool types, and refined retouch on blanks. Those features are also shared by the contemporaneous sites documented across the broader Eurasian and African continents. However, the rarity of prepared core technologies at Lingjing, such as Levallois or laminar flaking, likely indicates a unique technological trajectory compared to sites outside of China. It is due to this that we herein adopt the term Chinese Middle Paleolithic to more clearly refer to the variations we have identified at Lingjing. The Lingjing lithic assemblage, overall, could potentially represent a regional expression of the Middle Paleolithic technocomplex in China, although details about the processes behind its development are still unclear. The study contributes to a new understanding of the long-standing view of the simplified technological behaviors in China before ~ 40 ka and sheds light on the interpretations of the implied human behavioral transformations in the early Late Pleistocene of China.
- Subjects :
- 010506 paleontology
Archeology
Crania
060102 archaeology
Pleistocene
biology
Archaic humans
06 humanities and the arts
biology.organism_classification
01 natural sciences
Archaeology
Lithic technology
Geography
Anthropology
Middle Paleolithic
Assemblage (archaeology)
0601 history and archaeology
China
Middle Stone Age
0105 earth and related environmental sciences
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 18669565 and 18669557
- Volume :
- 11
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........9bd9fa584bf069b79011e48df7611ada