Human occupation of northern Australia by 65,000 years ago
Abstract
The
time of arrival of people in Australia is an unresolved question. It is
relevant to debates about when modern humans first dispersed out of
Africa and when their descendants incorporated genetic material from
Neanderthals, Denisovans and possibly other hominins. Humans have also
been implicated in the extinction of Australia’s megafauna. Here we
report the results of new excavations conducted at Madjedbebe, a rock
shelter in northern Australia.
Artefacts in primary depositional context are concentrated in three dense bands, with the stratigraphic integrity of the deposit demonstrated by artefact refits and by optical dating and other analyses of the sediments. Human occupation began around 65,000 years ago, with a distinctive stone tool assemblage including grinding stones, ground ochres, reflective additives and ground-edge hatchet heads.
This evidence sets a new minimum age for the arrival of humans in Australia, the dispersal of modern humans out of Africa, and the subsequent interactions of modern humans with Neanderthals and Denisovans.
Artefacts in primary depositional context are concentrated in three dense bands, with the stratigraphic integrity of the deposit demonstrated by artefact refits and by optical dating and other analyses of the sediments. Human occupation began around 65,000 years ago, with a distinctive stone tool assemblage including grinding stones, ground ochres, reflective additives and ground-edge hatchet heads.
This evidence sets a new minimum age for the arrival of humans in Australia, the dispersal of modern humans out of Africa, and the subsequent interactions of modern humans with Neanderthals and Denisovans.
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário
Observação: somente um membro deste blog pode postar um comentário.