Early modern human lithic technology from Jerimalai, East Timor

Abstract

Jerimalai is a rock shelter in East Timor with cultural remains dated to 42,000 years ago, making it one of the oldest known sites of modern human activity in island Southeast Asia. It has special global significance for its record of early pelagic fishing and ancient shell fish hooks. It is also of regional significance for its early occupation and comparatively large assemblage of Pleistocene stone artefacts. Three major findings arise from our study of the stone artefacts. First, there is little change in lithic technology over the 42,000 year sequence, with the most noticeable change being the addition of new artefact types and raw materials in the midHolocene. Second, the assemblage is dominated by small chert cores and implements rather than pebble tools and choppers, a pattern we argue pattern, we argue, that is common in island SE Asian sites as opposed to mainland SE Asian sites. Third, the Jerimalai assemblage bears a striking resemblance to the assemblage from Liang Bua, argued by the Liang Bua excavation team to be associated with Homo floresiensis. We argue that the near proximity of these two islands along the Indonesian island chain (c.100 km apart), the long antiquity of modern human occupation in the region (as documented at Jerimalai), and the strong resemblance of distinctive flake stone technologies seen at both sites, raises the intriguing possibility that both the Liang Bua and Jerimalai assemblages were created by modern humans. Jerimalai is a rock shelter in East Timor with cultural remains dated to 42,000 years 26 ago, making it one of the oldest known sites of modern human activity in island 27 Southeast Asia. It has special global significance for its record of early pelagic fishing 28 and ancient shell fish hooks. It is also of regional significance for its early occupation 29and comparatively large assemblage of Pleistocene stone artefacts. Three major 30 findings arise from our study of the stone artefacts. First, there is little change in lithic 31 technology over the 42,000 year sequence, with the most noticeable change being the 32 addition of new artefact types and raw materials in the mid-Holocene. Second, the 33 assemblage is dominated by small chert cores and implements rather than pebble tools 34 and choppers, a pattern we argue is common in island SE Asian sites as opposed to 35 mainland SE Asian sites. Third, the Jerimalai assemblage bears a striking resemblance 36 to the assemblage from Liang Bua, argued by the Liang Bua excavation team to be 37 associated with Homo floresiensis. We argue that the near proximity of these two 38 islands along the Indonesian Island chain (c.100km apart), the long antiquity of 39 modern human occupation in the region (as documented at Jerimalai), and the strong 40 resemblance of distinctive flake stone technologies seen at both sites, raises the 41 intriguing possibility that both the Liang Bua and Jerimalai assemblages were created 42 by modern humans. 43 44

The Llonin Cave (Peñamellera Alta, Asturias, Spain), level III (Galería): techno-typological characterisation of the Badegoulian lithic and bone assemblages

“…This technological change seems to overtake Llonin site's specificity and it takes part in all the technological and toolkit change (Aura et al 2012, Banks et al 2011, Borao et al 2016, Ducasse 2010, Langlais et al 2010, Pétillon and Ducasse 2012, Utrilla 2004, Utrilla et al 2012. As to splintered pieces and bipolar reduction, it has been proposed as a more efficient utilization of raw material (Pargeter and Eren 2017) and an increase has been detected in other areas during the LGM as a technological response to climate instability and precarious access to raw materials (Marwick et al 2016). Here these aspects need to be assessed, together with the whole archeological assemblage's data.…”

Kisar and the Archaeology of Small Islands in the Wallacean Archipelago

“…The dominant raw material is a siliceous chert ( Figure 6) ranging in color from blue to red, and often containing flaws from chemical and physical weathering. Chert occurs in Timor-Leste as cobbles in creeks and rivers along the north coast (Hawkins et al 2017a;Marwick et al 2016); however, the HSE chert is less homogenous than chert in the Timor-Leste sites so is unlikely to have had the same origin. Chert seams may occur on Kisar but none have yet been identified.…”

The deep human prehistory of global tropical forests and its relevance for modern conservation

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