Description
Authors: L.S. Basell, A.G. Brown, P.S. Toms, C. Norman, R. Hosfield, P. Tanner,Abstract: The tundra and steppe conditions of southern England during MIS 3-2 drove landform evolution in a world inhabited by megafuana including hominins. The coastal cliffs at Doniford, Somerset, UK have been well-known as a source of both cold stage mammalian fauna and lithic artefacts since the late 19th century. Collecting has produced an assemblage of lithics with both Palaeolithic and Mesolithic affinities which was not archaeologically coherent. This paper presents data, including a new diagnostic lithic, which resolves this archaeological contradiction, and presents a new geoarchaeological and chronometric data for S.W. England. This research demonstrates how a major period of cold climate erosion can generate a complex archaeological record where artefacts and faunal remains of different ages have become incorporated into fluvial deposits and how such a sequence can be explained using a combination of geomorphology, sedimentology and OSL dating. The paper also considers the implications of the Doniford sequence for the glaciation of southern Britain.
| Period | 03 Jan 2018 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Quaternary Research Association Annual Meeting |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Plymouth, United KingdomShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | National |