A multi‐method approach to dating the burial and skeleton of Kiacatoo Man,New South Wales,Australia

Kiacatoo Man, a large, rugged Aboriginal adult buried in the Lachlan riverine plains of southeastern Australia, was discovered in 2011. Laser‐ablation uranium series analysis on bone yielded a minimum age for the burial of 27.4 ± 0.4 ka (2σ). Single‐grain, optically stimulated luminescence ages on quartz sediment in which the grave had been dug gave a weighted mean age of 26.4 ± 1.5 ka (1σ). Luminescence samples from the grave infill and from sediment beneath the grave exhibit overdispersed dose distributions consistent with bioturbation or other disturbance, which has obscured the burial signal. The overlap between the minimum (U‐series) and maximum (luminescence) ages places the burial between 27.0 and 29.4 ka (2σ). Luminescence ages obtained from the channel belt of between 28 ± 2 and 25 ± 3 ka indicate that fluvial sedimentation was occurring before the Last Glacial Maximum, which is consistent with the broader geomorphic setting. Together, these results are internally and regionally consistent, and indicate that Kiacatoo Man was one of the more ancient individuals so far identified in Australia. His remains are important to our understanding of patterns of biological variation and other processes that have shaped people in the Murray‐Darling Basin through time. Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Imaging of Buried Archaeological Materials: The Reflection Properties of Archaeological Wood

Effective marine archaeological site management demands detailed information on not only the spatial distribution of artefacts but also the degradation state of the materials present. Although sonar methods have frequently been used in an attempt to detect buried wooden shipwrecks they are currently unable to indicate their degradation state. To assess the sensitivity of acoustic measurements to changes in the degradation state of such material, and hence the potential for sonars to quantify degradation, laboratory measurements of compressional wave velocity, as well as bulk density for oak and pine samples, in varying states of decay, were undertaken. These data enabled the calculation of theoretical reflection coefficients for such materials buried in various marine sediments. As wood degrades, the reflection coefficients become more negative, resulting in the hypothesis that the more degraded wood becomes, the easier it should be to detect. Typical reflection coefficients of the order of −0.43 and −0.52 for the most degraded oak and pine samples in sand are predicted. Conversely, for wood exposed to seawater the predicted reflection coefficients are large and positive for undegraded material (0.35 for oak, 0.18 for pine) and decrease to zero or slightly below for the most degraded samples. This indicates that exposed timbers, when heavily degraded, can be acoustically transparent and so undetectable by acoustic methods. Corroboration of these experimental results was provided through comparison with high resolution seismic reflection data that has been acquired over two shipwrecks.     

Progress in Environmental Evolvement and Environmental Archaeology Study in the Yangtze Delta （China）

A review was conducted on the environmental evolvement and environmental archaeological research since the 1980s in the Yangtze Delta. Former environmental evolvement and environmental archaeological research results can be summed up into 4 aspects： 1） Formation and evolution of the Taihu Lake; 2） Transgression and sea-level changes in the Holocene epoch; 3） Reconstruction of the pre-historical environment; and 4） Impacts of environmental variations on the rise and fall of human civilization （formation of the cultural interruptions）. Based on this review, some limitations in the present research methods and possible outcomes are pointed out in this paper.     

湖北辽瓦店遗址地层记录的环境变迁与人类活动的关系研究

用XRF和ICP-AES方法分别测试了湖北辽瓦店遗址地层样品的氧化物含量和地球化学元素含量,恢复了遗址地层中夏代文化层、东周文化层和明清文化层记录的环境变化和人类活动特征。结果表明:1)夏代文化层时期,气候温暖湿润,生态环境良好,人类活动与自然环境和谐度高,有原始的手工业活动记录。2)东周时期气候开始进入干旱期,干旱程度在上东周文化层中部逐渐加深(LOI=6.98%),到了上东周文化层顶部气候进入暖湿期。该层Cu含量的异常高值(0.31mg/g)和出土的青铜器表明本文化层反映了青铜社会的繁荣期,而P含量的高值(22.73mg/g)和动物骨屑则反映了该期人们驯养、捕猎动物的普遍性。3)明清时期的气候趋于干凉,明代文化层中部有短暂暖湿期,后又进入冷干期。清代文化层中下部有暖湿特征,之后重新进入干冷期。该层Ca(均值101.5mg/g),Mg(均值60.27mg/g),Zn和Pb的高含量表明遗址曾有过制陶(瓷)业的历史。另外,Mg和Ca含量的高值与耕作区、墙壁灰浆、生活垃圾堆积等人类活动相关。Ca和Mg含量在近现代层逐步升高揭示了人类活动逐渐增强的事实。地层的平均粒径自上东周文化层(<142cm)开始出现振荡,暗示汉江洪水和季节性山洪发生的频率不断增加,表明恶劣环境条件虽然促进了人类生产力水平的提高,但原始生态系统却遭到破坏,人类活动对自然环境的正反馈效应日益凸显。     

史前连续文化聚落的决策树分类挖掘研究——以郑州-洛阳地区为例

利用C4.5决策树分类算法和GIS组件Super Map Objects,开发实现了基于连续文化序列的空间数据挖掘系统,运用此系统对郑州-洛阳地区史前四个连续文化时期的聚落进行了数据挖掘,提取了聚落遗址面积的分类规则,并根据这些分类规则和聚落的空间分布情况对四个文化时期的I级聚落进行对比分析,得出了I级聚落的空间分布特点,即I级聚落中的一些特大面积的聚落朝着中心聚落的方向发展。     

近20年来中国旧石器考古学的进展与思考

本文记述近20年来中国旧石器考古学研究的主要成果,着重论述早期人类扩散的速度和中国旧石器工业的基本框架:北、南方各存在一个主工业,并存若干区域工业;同时对试验考古研究以及东西文化比较研究等的现状和问题提出孔见。     

长江三角洲长江以北地区全新世以来人地关系的环境考古研究

通过长江三角洲长江以北地区高邮龙虬庄和海安青墩两个新石器时代考古遗址剖面粒度、磁化率、孢粉以及年代学测定，较为全面地分析了该区全新世以来生态环境变化与人类文明兴衰的相互关系，研究结果表明：在有人类活动以前，该区距离海洋较远，但受海面变化影响强烈。此后，气候向暖湿方向发展，7000—6000间的大西洋温暖湿润气候以及3700aB．P．左右期间，该区气候适宜，人类文明在这样的适宜气侯条件下得到长足发展。值得注意的是，海安青墩遗址剖面中出现厚达1m多的自然沉积地层，粒度分析以及孢粉分析表明，这一自然沉积地层是4000aB．P．以来的海侵事件所致，正是这次海侵事件，使研究区人类文明得以衰落。     

泥河湾侯家窑遗址古河流及环境考古意义

侯家窑遗址位于泥河湾盆地西北部,自发现至今,历经40余年,但遗址年代和古人类生存环境问题仍悬而未决。本文基于地质地貌观测、电阻率测深、高程测量等工作,试图通过遗址区地层结构和古河流发育情况研究,阐释上述问题。结果如下:①伴随着泥河湾古湖的快速萎缩,在侯家窑遗址区发育了一条源自北部熊耳山、宽逾1 km的古河流。它形成于240 ka B.P.前,消亡于晚更新世初,发育历史贯穿了侯家窑古人类生存阶段的始终。②遗址古文化遗存不是埋藏在湖相泥河湾层中,而是埋藏于距今约224~161 ka的牛轭湖沉积层和壤化黏土层内,表明古人类在此倚河而居长达6万年。③遗址区面向东南的宽阔圈椅状地形,为古人类生存造就了相对温和舒适的地理环境;古河流既为古人类提供了水源,良好的流域生态环境也给古人类提供了富足的食物;熊耳山既是古河流源地,也是优质石料产地,古河流将石料搬运至遗址附近,石器制作便利。因此,在寒冷气候条件下生活的古人类,选择生境较好的侯家窑遗址区倚河而居势成必然。④遗址区古河流发育在易遭侵蚀的泥河湾湖相沉积层之上,河水泥沙含量高、浑浊,唯有遗址附近的牛轭湖区水流缓滞、清澈,而且植物繁茂,是各类动物优先猎食和饮水的地方。但牛轭湖独特的地貌特点,使动物们在急迫情况下难以逃脱,古人类此地围猎,远较他地成功率高。