Description
A reliable chronology is one of the keys to understanding the nature of the transition from the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic in western Eurasia. The transition describes the period during which anatomically modern humans (AMHs) replaced Neanderthals—who ultimately became extinct. The period over which this took place and the length of the temporal overlap between the two groups is a central question concerning researchers in this field with wide ranging implications in a number of areas; for example, the cognitiveabilities of Neanderthals and whether there was any genetic exchange between the two populations.
Within a large project funded by the NERC in the UK, we have been dating over 400 samples of bone, shell and charcoal from more than 50 key Palaeolithic sites in over 10 countries. The main focus has been on sites with a succession of contexts containing lithic industries attributed to the Mousterian, Uluzzian, Châtelperronian, Aurignacian and Gravettian. Work undertaken in Oxford over the last decade has been aimed at improving the dating of material between 25—55 ka BP which covers the Middle–Upper Palaeolithic transition. We have developed aspects of our pre-treatment chemistry, particularly the purification of bone collagen using ultrafiltration. When comparing the ultrafiltered results with previously determined samples of the same bone from our laboratory, and other laboratories, the results in many cases are quite different. When ultrafiltration is used, the dates are often older, and we consider, more accurate. We are also applying ABOx-SC methods to samples of charcoal, which shows similar improvements in many cases. In tandem, work has been undertaken on improving the applicability of our background correction for bone (Wood et al., 2010). In addition, we have been refining the detection of trace calcite in samples of marine shell for radiocarbon dating (Douka et al., 2010). In this paper we will discuss the emerging chronology for the dispersal of the earliest anatomically modern humans into Europe by presenting results from some of the key sites in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Belgium.
References:
Wood, R.E., Bronk Ramsey, C. and Higham, T.F.G. 2010. Refining the ultrafiltration bone pretreatment background for radiocarbon dating at ORAU. Radiocarbon 52, Nr 2–3, 2010, p 600–611.
Douka, K., Hedges, R.E.M. and Higham, T.F.G. 2010. Improved AMS 14C datingof shell carbonates using high-precision X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and a novel density separation protocol (CarDS). Radiocarbon 52, Nr 2–3, 2010, p 735–751.
| Period | 24 Sept 2011 |
|---|---|
| Event title | European Society for Human Evolution |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Leipzig, GermanyShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |