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Martinón-Torres M, d'Errico F, Santos E, Álvaro Gallo A, Amano N, Archer W, Armitage SJ, Arsuaga JL, Bermúdez de Castro JM, Blinkhorn J, Crowther A, Douka K, Dubernet S, Faulkner P, Fernández-Colón P, Kourampas N, González García J, Larreina D, Le Bourdonnec FX, MacLeod G, Martín-Francés L, Massilani D, Mercader J, Miller JM, Ndiema E, Notario B, Pitarch Martí A, Prendergast ME, Queffelec A, Rigaud S, Roberts P, Shoaee MJ, Shipton C, Simpson I, Boivin N, Petraglia MD. Earliest known human burial in Africa. Nature 2021; 593:95-100. [PMID: 33953416 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03457-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The origin and evolution of hominin mortuary practices are topics of intense interest and debate1-3. Human burials dated to the Middle Stone Age (MSA) are exceedingly rare in Africa and unknown in East Africa1-6. Here we describe the partial skeleton of a roughly 2.5- to 3.0-year-old child dating to 78.3 ± 4.1 thousand years ago, which was recovered in the MSA layers of Panga ya Saidi (PYS), a cave site in the tropical upland coast of Kenya7,8. Recent excavations have revealed a pit feature containing a child in a flexed position. Geochemical, granulometric and micromorphological analyses of the burial pit content and encasing archaeological layers indicate that the pit was deliberately excavated. Taphonomical evidence, such as the strict articulation or good anatomical association of the skeletal elements and histological evidence of putrefaction, support the in-place decomposition of the fresh body. The presence of little or no displacement of the unstable joints during decomposition points to an interment in a filled space (grave earth), making the PYS finding the oldest known human burial in Africa. The morphological assessment of the partial skeleton is consistent with its assignment to Homo sapiens, although the preservation of some primitive features in the dentition supports increasing evidence for non-gradual assembly of modern traits during the emergence of our species. The PYS burial sheds light on how MSA populations interacted with the dead.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Martinón-Torres
- CENIEH (National Research Center on Human Evolution), Burgos, Spain. .,Anthropology Department, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Francesco d'Errico
- UMR 5199 CNRS De la Préhistoire à l'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Talence, France.,SFF Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Elena Santos
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.,Cátedra de Otoacústica Evolutiva y Paleoantropología (HM Hospitales - Universidad de Alcalá), Departamento de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad de Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, Spain
| | - Ana Álvaro Gallo
- CENIEH (National Research Center on Human Evolution), Burgos, Spain
| | - Noel Amano
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
| | - William Archer
- Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, National Museum, Bloemfontein, South Africa.,Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Simon J Armitage
- SFF Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.,Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK
| | - Juan Luis Arsuaga
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.,Departamento de Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias Geológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - José María Bermúdez de Castro
- CENIEH (National Research Center on Human Evolution), Burgos, Spain.,Anthropology Department, University College London, London, UK
| | - James Blinkhorn
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK.,Pan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
| | - Alison Crowther
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Katerina Douka
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Stéphan Dubernet
- UMR 5060 CNRS-Université Bordeaux Montaigne IRAMAT-CRP2A: Institut de recherche sur les Archéomatériaux - Centre de recherche en physique appliquée à l'archéologie, Maison de l'archéologie, Pessac, France
| | - Patrick Faulkner
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Department of Archaeology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - Nikos Kourampas
- Centre for Open Learning, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.,Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK
| | - Jorge González García
- 3D Applications Engineer and Heritage Specialist Digital Heritage and Humanities Collections, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - David Larreina
- CENIEH (National Research Center on Human Evolution), Burgos, Spain
| | - François-Xavier Le Bourdonnec
- UMR 5060 CNRS-Université Bordeaux Montaigne IRAMAT-CRP2A: Institut de recherche sur les Archéomatériaux - Centre de recherche en physique appliquée à l'archéologie, Maison de l'archéologie, Pessac, France
| | - George MacLeod
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK
| | - Laura Martín-Francés
- CENIEH (National Research Center on Human Evolution), Burgos, Spain.,Anthropology Department, University College London, London, UK
| | - Diyendo Massilani
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Julio Mercader
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Jennifer M Miller
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
| | - Emmanuel Ndiema
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,National Museums of Kenya, Department of Earth Sciences, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Belén Notario
- CENIEH (National Research Center on Human Evolution), Burgos, Spain
| | - Africa Pitarch Martí
- UMR 5199 CNRS De la Préhistoire à l'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Talence, France.,Seminari d'Estudis i Recerques Prehistòriques (SERP), Facultat de Geografia i Història, Departament d'Història i Arqueologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Alain Queffelec
- UMR 5199 CNRS De la Préhistoire à l'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Talence, France
| | - Solange Rigaud
- UMR 5199 CNRS De la Préhistoire à l'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Talence, France
| | - Patrick Roberts
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany.,School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Mohammad Javad Shoaee
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
| | - Ceri Shipton
- Institute of Archaeology, University College London, London, UK.,Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Ian Simpson
- Centre for Open Learning, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Nicole Boivin
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany. .,School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. .,Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. .,Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.
| | - Michael D Petraglia
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany. .,School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. .,Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA. .,Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution (ARCHE), Griffith University, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
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Wedage O, Picin A, Blinkhorn J, Douka K, Deraniyagala S, Kourampas N, Perera N, Simpson I, Boivin N, Petraglia M, Roberts P. Microliths in the South Asian rainforest ~45-4 ka: New insights from Fa-Hien Lena Cave, Sri Lanka. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0222606. [PMID: 31577796 PMCID: PMC6774521 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0222606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Microliths–small, retouched, often-backed stone tools–are often interpreted to be the product of composite tools, including projectile weapons, and efficient hunting strategies by modern humans. In Europe and Africa these lithic toolkits are linked to hunting of medium- and large-sized game found in grassland or woodland settings, or as adaptations to risky environments during periods of climatic change. Here, we report on a recently excavated lithic assemblage from the Late Pleistocene cave site of Fa-Hien Lena in the tropical evergreen rainforest of Sri Lanka. Our analyses demonstrate that Fa-Hien Lena represents the earliest microlith assemblage in South Asia (c. 48,000–45,000 cal. years BP) in firm association with evidence for the procurement of small to medium size arboreal prey and rainforest plants. Moreover, our data highlight that the lithic technology of Fa-Hien Lena changed little over the long span of human occupation (c. 48,000–45,000 cal. years BP to c. 4,000 cal. years BP) indicating a successful, stable technological adaptation to the tropics. We argue that microlith assemblages were an important part of the environmental plasticity that enabled Homo sapiens to colonise and specialise in a diversity of ecological settings during its expansion within and beyond Africa. The proliferation of diverse microlithic technologies across Eurasia c. 48–45 ka was part of a flexible human ‘toolkit’ that assisted our species’ spread into all of the world’s environments, and the development of specialised technological and cultural approaches to novel ecological situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oshan Wedage
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- Department of History and Archaeology, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Gangodawila, Nugegoda, Sri Lanka
- * E-mail: (OW); (AP); (MP); (PR)
| | - Andrea Picin
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- * E-mail: (OW); (AP); (MP); (PR)
| | - James Blinkhorn
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London, London, England, United Kingdom
| | - Katerina Douka
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford, England, United Kingdom
| | | | - Nikos Kourampas
- Biological and Environmental Science, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom
- Centre for Open Learning, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Nimal Perera
- Department of Archaeology, Government of Sri Lanka, Colombo, Sri Lanka
| | - Ian Simpson
- Biological and Environmental Science, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Nicole Boivin
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
- Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., United States of America
| | - Michael Petraglia
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., United States of America
- * E-mail: (OW); (AP); (MP); (PR)
| | - Patrick Roberts
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
- School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- * E-mail: (OW); (AP); (MP); (PR)
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Wedage O, Amano N, Langley MC, Douka K, Blinkhorn J, Crowther A, Deraniyagala S, Kourampas N, Simpson I, Perera N, Picin A, Boivin N, Petraglia M, Roberts P. Specialized rainforest hunting by Homo sapiens ~45,000 years ago. Nat Commun 2019; 10:739. [PMID: 30783099 PMCID: PMC6381157 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-08623-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2018] [Accepted: 01/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Defining the distinctive capacities of Homo sapiens relative to other hominins is a major focus for human evolutionary studies. It has been argued that the procurement of small, difficult-to-catch, agile prey is a hallmark of complex behavior unique to our species; however, most research in this regard has been limited to the last 20,000 years in Europe and the Levant. Here, we present detailed faunal assemblage and taphonomic data from Fa-Hien Lena Cave in Sri Lanka that demonstrates specialized, sophisticated hunting of semi-arboreal and arboreal monkey and squirrel populations from ca. 45,000 years ago, in a tropical rainforest environment. Facilitated by complex osseous and microlithic technologies, we argue these data highlight that the early capture of small, elusive mammals was part of the plastic behavior of Homo sapiens that allowed it to rapidly colonize a series of extreme environments that were apparently untouched by its hominin relatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oshan Wedage
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany.
- Department of History and Archaeology, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Gangodawila, Nugegoda, Colombo, 10250, Sri Lanka.
| | - Noel Amano
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany.
| | - Michelle C Langley
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Environmental Futures Research Institute, Griffith University, Nathan, Brisbane, QLD, 4111, Australia
| | - Katerina Douka
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3QY, UK
| | - James Blinkhorn
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey, TW20 OEX, UK
| | - Alison Crowther
- Department of Archaeology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
| | - Siran Deraniyagala
- Department of Archaeology, Government of Sri Lanka, Colombo, 00700, Sri Lanka
| | - Nikos Kourampas
- Biological & Environmental Science, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK
- Center for Open Learning, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH8 8AQ, UK
| | - Ian Simpson
- Biological & Environmental Science, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK
| | - Nimal Perera
- Department of Archaeology, Government of Sri Lanka, Colombo, 00700, Sri Lanka
| | - Andrea Picin
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Nicole Boivin
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Michael Petraglia
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany.
- Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20013-7012, USA.
| | - Patrick Roberts
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, 07745, Jena, Germany.
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Prendergast ME, Rouby H, Punnwong P, Marchant R, Crowther A, Kourampas N, Shipton C, Walsh M, Lambeck K, Boivin NL. Continental Island Formation and the Archaeology of Defaunation on Zanzibar, Eastern Africa. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0149565. [PMID: 26901050 PMCID: PMC4763145 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0149565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2015] [Accepted: 02/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
With rising sea levels at the end of the Pleistocene, land-bridge or continental islands were formed around the world. Many of these islands have been extensively studied from a biogeographical perspective, particularly in terms of impacts of island creation on terrestrial vertebrates. However, a majority of studies rely on contemporary faunal distributions rather than fossil data. Here, we present archaeological findings from the island of Zanzibar (also known as Unguja) off the eastern African coast, to provide a temporal perspective on island biogeography. The site of Kuumbi Cave, excavated by multiple teams since 2005, has revealed the longest cultural and faunal record for any eastern African island. This record extends to the Late Pleistocene, when Zanzibar was part of the mainland, and attests to the extirpation of large mainland mammals in the millennia after the island became separated. We draw on modeling and sedimentary data to examine the process by which Zanzibar was most recently separated from the mainland, providing the first systematic insights into the nature and chronology of this process. We subsequently investigate the cultural and faunal record from Kuumbi Cave, which provides at least five key temporal windows into human activities and faunal presence: two at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), one during the period of post-LGM rapid sea level rise and island formation, and two in the late Holocene (Middle Iron Age and Late Iron Age). This record demonstrates the presence of large mammals during the period of island formation, and their severe reduction or disappearance in the Kuumbi Cave sequence by the late Holocene. While various limitations, including discontinuity in the sequence, problematize attempts to clearly attribute defaunation to anthropogenic or island biogeographic processes, Kuumbi Cave offers an unprecedented opportunity to examine post-Pleistocene island formation and its long-term consequences for human and animal communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary E. Prendergast
- Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Saint Louis University, Madrid, Spain
- * E-mail:
| | - Hélène Rouby
- Laboratoire de Géologie de l’École Normale Supérieure, UMR 8538 du CNRS, 75231 Paris, France
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
| | - Paramita Punnwong
- Faculty of Environment and Resource Studies, Mahidol University, Salaya, Nakhon Pathom 73170, Thailand
| | - Robert Marchant
- Environment Department, York Institute for Tropical Ecosystems, York, United Kingdom
| | - Alison Crowther
- School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Nikos Kourampas
- Office of Lifelong Learning, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Ceri Shipton
- McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- British Institute in Eastern Africa, British Academy, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Martin Walsh
- Wolfson College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Kurt Lambeck
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
| | - Nicole L. Boivin
- Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, Germany
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Perera N, Kourampas N, Simpson IA, Deraniyagala SU, Bulbeck D, Kamminga J, Perera J, Fuller DQ, Szabó K, Oliveira NV. People of the ancient rainforest: late Pleistocene foragers at the Batadomba-lena rockshelter, Sri Lanka. J Hum Evol 2011; 61:254-69. [PMID: 21777951 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2011.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 79] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2010] [Revised: 03/18/2011] [Accepted: 04/02/2011] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Batadomba-lena, a rockshelter in the rainforest of southwestern Sri Lanka, has yielded some of the earliest evidence of Homo sapiens in South Asia. H. sapiens foragers were present at Batadomba-lena from ca. 36,000 cal BP to the terminal Pleistocene and Holocene. Human occupation was sporadic before the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Batadomba-lena's Late Pleistocene inhabitants foraged for a broad spectrum of plant and mainly arboreal animal resources (monkeys, squirrels and abundant rainforest snails), derived from a landscape that retained equatorial rainforest cover through periods of pronounced regional aridity during the LGM. Juxtaposed hearths, palaeofloors with habitation debris, postholes, excavated pits, and animal and plant remains, including abundant Canarium nutshells, reflect intensive habitation of the rockshelter in times of monsoon intensification and biome reorganisation after ca. 16,000 cal BP. This period corresponds with further broadening of the economic spectrum, evidenced though increased contribution of squirrels, freshwater snails and Canarium nuts in the diet of the rockshelter occupants. Microliths are more abundant and morphologically diverse in the earliest, pre-LGM layer and decline markedly during intensified rockshelter use on the wane of the LGM. We propose that changing toolkits and subsistence base reflect changing foraging practices, from shorter-lived visits of highly mobile foraging bands in the period before the LGM, to intensified use of Batadomba-lena and intense foraging for diverse resources around the site during and, especially, following the LGM. Traces of ochre, marine shell beads and other objects from an 80 km-distant shore, and, possibly burials reflect symbolic practices from the outset of human presence at the rockshelter. Evidence for differentiated use of space (individual hearths, possible habitation structures) is present in LGM and terminal Pleistocene layers. The record of Batadomba-lena demonstrates that Late Pleistocene pathways to (aspects of) behavioural 'modernity' (composite tools, practice of symbolism and ritual, broad spectrum economy) were diverse and ecologically contingent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nimal Perera
- Sri Lanka Department of Archaeology, Excavation Branch, Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo 7, Sri Lanka.
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