The position and context of Middle Palaeolithic industries from the Ebbsfleet Valley, Kent, UK

Abstract

The late Middle Pleistocene sites in the Ebbsfleet Valley, Kent, UK, have yielded archaeological assemblages critical to understanding the early Middle Palaeolithic of northwestern Europe. Despite a long history of research, the nature and context of these assemblages are still poorly understood. This paper clarifies the stratigraphic, environmental and archaeological records at Ebbsfleet. These reflect a cold-warm-cold sequence of climatic events, preserved within part of the Taplow/ Mucking Formation of the Thames (Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 8/7/6). Levallois artefacts are shown to be restricted to the lower part of the Ebbsfleet Channel sequence (Phases I and II) and are assigned to late MIS 8/early MIS 7. This material is associated with fauna indicative of open environments during both cool and temperate conditions. Handaxe assemblages are recorded from higher up the sequence (Phases III-V), but have been redeposited from higher terrace units nearby. No primary context archaeology is apparent during these later phases of aggradation. This may indicate that humans abandoned the site once available raw material became inaccessible, and may also reflect a decline in human presence in Britain during the latter part of MIS 7.

Fossils from Quaternary fluvial archives: Sources of biostratigraphical, biogeographical and palaeoclimatic evidence

“…Further south, the MVPP produced amino acid racemization data from several fossiliferous localities in eastern Essex, including the MIS 11 sequences at Clacton-on-Sea, East Hyde, Bradwell Hall, the MIS 9 sequences at Shoeburyness, Cudmore Grove, East Wick and the Last Interglacial (MIS 5e) site at East Mersea. The famous Levallois site at Baker's Hole, located in the Ebbsfleet Valley, NW Kent, has also been the subject of recent research following the construction of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and Ebbsfleet International station (Scott et al, 2010;Wenban-Smith, 2014). This locality, dated to MIS 7, represents the last surviving remnant of what was (before quarrying) a wide area containing Levalloisian lithic remains in undisturbed primary context, associated with assemblages of large mammals, molluscs, small vertebrates and ostracods; publication of detailed biostratigraphical and palaeoenvironmental analyses is in progress.…”

The British Middle Palaeolithic

“…Most EMP sites are lacking in good environmental information, but where it survives in good association with archaeology, the habitats are of open grassland with woodland nearby. Although the Phase I deposits at Ebbsfleet reflect colder conditions, the climate of the Phase II sediments and those at Stoke Tunnel are both interglacial in character (see above ;Wymer, 1985;Scott et al, 2010). In general terms the predominant fauna of MIS 7 seems to reflect open grassland in a temperate environment, although the oxygen isotope curve clearly also shows colder conditions, particularly during MIS 7b (e.g.…”

Frontiers and route‐ways from Europe: the Early Middle Palaeolithic of Britain

“…The identified pattern is based on the assumption that most, if not all, Levallois artefacts in Britain reflect Early Middle Palaeolithic, rather than Late Middle Palaeolithic, activity. As discussed above, this assumption is mainly based on good dating of all the major sites to between MIS 9 and 6, such as Ebbsfleet (Scott et al ., ), Crayford (Penkman et al ., ), Creffield Road (Scott, ), various locations in Yiewsley and West Drayton (Scott, ), Warsash (Davis et al ., ; Hatch et al ., ) and Pontnewydd Cave (Aldhouse‐Green et al ., ). Many other locations occur on the middle terraces of rivers (Wymer, ), or otherwise on poorly defined terraces on some of the lowland rivers, such as the Great Ouse or the Nene.…”

“…300–200 ka (White and Jacobi, ). This is in part based on their occurrence in the middle terraces of various river systems (Wymer, ; Roe, ; Ashton et al ., ; Westaway et al ., ), but more importantly on the dating of several large Levallois sites such as Ebbsfleet (Scott et al ., ), Crayford (Penkman et al ., ), Creffield Road (Scott, ), various locations in Yiewsley and West Drayton (Scott, ) and Pontnewydd Cave (Aldhouse‐Green et al ., ). Some caution is warranted, however, where good dating is lacking.…”