Jacobs Zenobia, Li Bo, Farr Lucy, Hill Evan, Hunt Chris, Jones Sacha, Rabett Ryan, Reynolds Tim, Roberts Richard G, Simpson David, Barker Graeme
ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage & Centre for Archaeological Science, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia.
ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage & Centre for Archaeological Science, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia.
J Hum Evol. 2017 Apr;105:69-88. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.01.008. Epub 2017 Mar 18.
The paper presents the results of optical dating of potassium-rich feldspar grains obtained from the Haua Fteah cave in Cyrenaica, northeast Libya, focussing on the chronology of the Deep Sounding excavated by Charles McBurney in the 1950s and re-excavated recently. Samples were also collected from a 1.25 m-deep trench (Trench S) excavated during the present project below the basal level of the Deep Sounding. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) data sets for multi-grain, single aliquots of quartz for samples from the Middle Trench were previously published. Re-analyses of these OSL data confirm significant variation in the dose saturation levels of the quartz signal, but allow the most robust OSL ages to be determined for comparison with previous age estimates and with those obtained in this study for potassium-rich feldspars from the Deep Sounding. The latter indicate that humans may have started to visit the cave as early as ∼150 ka ago, but that major use of the cave occurred during MIS 5, with the accumulation of the Deep Sounding sediments. Correlations between optical ages and episodes of "Pre-Aurignacian" artefact discard indicate that human use of the cave during MIS 5 was highly intermittent. The earliest phases of human activity appear to have occurred during interstadial conditions (5e and 5c), with a later phase of lithic discard associated with more stadial conditions, possibly MIS 5b. We argue that the "Pre-Aurignacian" assemblage can probably be linked with modern humans, like the succeeding "Levalloiso-Mousterian" assemblage; two modern human mandibles associated with the latter are associated with a modelled age of 73-65 ka. If this attribution is correct, then the new chronology implies that modern humans using "Pre-Aurignacian" technologies were in Cyrenaica as early as modern humans equipped with "Aterian" technologies were in the Maghreb, raising new questions about variability among lithic technologies during the initial phases of modern human dispersals into North Africa.
本文展示了从利比亚东北部昔兰尼加的豪阿·费泰洞穴获取的富钾长石颗粒的光释光测年结果，重点关注20世纪50年代由查尔斯·麦克伯尼挖掘并于近期重新挖掘的深层探方的年代学。样本还取自本项目期间在深层探方底部以下挖掘的一个1.25米深的探沟（探沟S）。先前已发表了中探沟样本的多颗粒石英单份试样的光激发荧光（OSL）数据集。对这些OSL数据的重新分析证实了石英信号剂量饱和水平存在显著差异，但能确定最可靠的OSL年龄，以便与先前的年龄估计值以及本研究中从深层探方获得的富钾长石的年龄估计值进行比较。后者表明人类可能早在约15万年前就开始访问该洞穴，但洞穴的主要使用发生在海洋同位素阶段5，伴随着深层探方沉积物的堆积。光释光年龄与“前奥瑞纳文化期”人工制品丢弃事件之间的相关性表明，人类在海洋同位素阶段5对该洞穴的使用高度断断续续。人类活动的最早阶段似乎发生在间冰期条件下（5e和5c），后期的石器丢弃阶段与更多的冰期条件相关，可能是海洋同位素阶段5b。我们认为，“前奥瑞纳文化期”组合可能与现代人类有关，就像后续的“勒瓦娄哇 - 莫斯特文化期”组合一样；与后者相关的两具现代人类下颌骨的模拟年龄为73 - 65 ka。如果这一归属正确，那么新的年代学意味着使用“前奥瑞纳文化期”技术的现代人类早在配备“阿特里安”技术的现代人类出现在马格里布之前就已在昔兰尼加，这就引发了关于现代人类向非洲北部扩散初期石器技术变异性的新问题。
