ANT200Y1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Glynn Isaac, Sangiran, Kebara Cave
Professor Michael Chazan Nov. 21, 2016
ANT200 LECTURE 9
RADIOCARBON CALIBRATION
• Since the earliest tools appeared, we haven’t been able to tell which species made them
HOMO ERECTUS
• 1.8 MYA
• Homo ergaster was an earlier African form—viewed as the same (Chazan)
• We are losing diversity with Homo erectus
• We end up with one genus, Homo
GLYNN ISAAC
• Home base/food sharing model
FLK NORTH
• Single elephant
• Stone tools
DK 1
• Some thought base for thought structure
• Problem with early sites → around Homo erectus (location)
• Located near bodies of water = unsafe to live near
ARE WE SEEING A SOCIAL ORGANIZATION WITH HOMO ERECTUS?
• At some level, it was a generalist
• Able to adapt to many ecological challenges
Ex. Paranthropus has a certain level for certain foods (grass/leaves)
• Homo erectus isn’t specialized
• No archaeological sites found outside of Africa older than 1.8 MYA
• Spread of hominins out of Africa tied to Homo erectus
• First hominin that looks closer to human anatomically
• Significant expansion in brain size
• What does migration actually entail?
- Sense of people being compelled to move
• Not looking at voyages of expansion, but population
ACHEULIAN
• Handaxe and cleaver
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Professor Michael Chazan Nov. 21, 2016
• Tool design
• Bifacial tools
- Earliest known tools that show concept of design—not just a working edge
KOKESELEI, KENYA (1.76 MYA)
• Very little elaboration in Handaxe
• In Africa 1.2 MYA you get more complex tools
SANGIRAN AND PERNING, JAVA (1.8 MYA)
• Fossils found in 19th century
• Very simple stone tools
• Not a trace looks like Acheulean
DMANISI, GEORGIA (1.8 MYA)
• Animal bones in wall are of extinct animals
• Originally studied for Medieval village
• Realize it is much older
• Medieval farmer → what did they thing when they saw these animals?
• Sabre tooth cats, large hyenas
• Found Homo erectus skulls
- Five fairly complete crania from one clear period of time
- One of the first sites outside of Africa
- One skull with no teeth = elderly person who lost teeth (depicts social group)
- Variation of skulls (small and large)
• Stone tools were extremely simple
PALEOMAGNETIC DATING
• Measures magnetic orientation of sediments
• Geologists take readings of dated profiles going back hundreds of thousands of years
• Volcanics aren’t always available for argon method, so this method can be useful
• Some dating goes back over 60 million years
• The last time magnetic fields were normal (sediment orientation) was less than 700,000
YA, then 1 MYA, then 1.8 MYA
• Sediments that are not the modern orientation, are constrained
ATAPUERCA, SPAIN (GRAN DOLINA)
• A site discovered when the installation of a train line exposed a buried cave
• Goes back around 700,000 years
• Human remains were found
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find more resources at oneclass.com
Professor Michael Chazan Nov. 21, 2016
• Simple flake stone tools with some use
• Homo erectus—at all of these sites the stone tools were pretty basic (to tell more, we’d
have to look at other factors → social, political, other theories)
ACHEULEAN (OUT OF AFRICA)
• The Movius Line was found (refuted → bone basin)
• Argued that there were no handaxes East of India, so not true—some were found in India
and China a little while ago
• Dated based on tektites (bits of meteorites that are glass so can be dated using argon
dating, as they were found at the same level as many of these stone tools)
- Around 1 MY old
• In Europe, Boxgrove revealed some handaxes from 500,000 YA
- Beautifully made and refined (hunting horses, etc.)
- Acheulean spreads across Europe and becomes very widespread after this (like
everywhere)
• NON-HANDAXE INDUSTRIES WERE ALSO FOUND
- Schoningen, Germany (large spears, no stone points, useful in hunting) 400,000 YA
- Beeches Pit (England) also reveals use of fire from about 400,000 YA
- Also, a major site in Israel gives major indication for fire with humans
- Also, a proposal in this time range for art objects
NEANDERTHALS
• Homo neanderthalensis or Homo sapiens neanderthalensis?
• brain size about the same compared to modern human (their might be slightly larger than
ours)
• Neanderthals have elongated heads, so base of cranium has a flat base of cranium, rather
than our v-shape (this might affect articulation)
• Have occipital “bun”
• Range from Europe into Central Asia, and down into the Middle East (that’s the most
southern point, none from Africa)
WHAT IS A MODERN HUMAN?
• Anatomical Definition → skeleton, physical body
• Behavioural Definition → art, social and political interactions, etc.
• Phylogenetic Definition → in terms of descent
THE MIDDLE EASTERN DILEMMA
• Neanderthals
• Industry → Middle Paleolithic (Levallois)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Radiocarbon calibration: since the earliest tools appeared, we haven"t been able to tell which species made them. Homo erectus: 1. 8 mya, homo ergaster was an earlier african form viewed as the same (chazan, we are losing diversity with homo erectus, we end up with one genus, homo. Dk 1: some thought base for thought structure, problem with early sites around homo erectus (location, located near bodies of water = unsafe to live near. Are we seeing a social organization with homo erectus: at some level, it was a generalist, able to adapt to many ecological challenges. Sense of people being compelled to move: not looking at voyages of expansion, but population. Nov. 21, 2016: tool design, bifacial tools. Earliest known tools that show concept of design not just a working edge. Kokeselei, kenya (1. 76 mya: very little elaboration in handaxe. In africa 1. 2 mya you get more complex tools.
