Show simple item record

dc.contributor.authorMorrissey, Peter
dc.contributor.authorMentzer, Susan M.
dc.contributor.authorWurz, Sarah Jacoba Deborah
dc.date.accessioned2024-03-15T12:06:03Z
dc.date.available2024-03-15T12:06:03Z
dc.date.created2023-09-17T17:34:38Z
dc.date.issued2023
dc.identifier.issn0047-2484
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/11250/3122626
dc.description.abstractCave 1B, in the Klasies River Main site complex (KRM), is best known for the recovery of the KRM 41815/SAM-AP 6222 human mandible. After initial skepticism over the modernity of this specimen, it is accepted that the mix of archaic and modern traits it displays is characteristic of early Homo sapiens individuals. Different authors have associated this specimen with the Middle Stone Age (MSA) I and II/Mossel Bay cultural phases, but the published data do not allow an unambiguous attribution. KRM 41815's frequent use in studies of the evolution of the human mandible, and its well-developed chin, makes clarifying its age and context important objectives. The field and micromorphology observations presented here provide greater insight into the stratigraphy and formation of the sequence exposed in the PP38 excavation. There are three major divisions: the basal Light Brown Sand (LBS) Member (not excavated), the Rubble Sand (RS) Member (MSA I), and the Shell and Sand Dark Carbonized (SASDC) Submember (MSA II). Cultural stratigraphy based on lithic artifacts remains the only way to make secure (but broad) temporal correlations with the rest of the site complex. This investigation shows that a range of anthropogenic, geogenic, and biogenic processes contributed to the deposition and post-depositional alteration of the identified microfacies. Short depositional hiatuses are reasonably common, and a significant hiatus was identified between the RS and SASDC. The impact of post-depositional processes on the RS is significant, with anthropogenic deposits poorly preserved. In comparison, the SASDC is dominated by hearths contained within deposits rich in reworked anthropogenic materials known as carbonized partings. Small shell disposal features are also present. The distribution of these anthropogenic features suggests continuity in the management of space throughout the MSA II occupations, from before 110 ka. New stratigraphic correlations indicate that KRM 41815 is unambiguously associated with the MSA I. Therefore, it predates 110 ka, with a lower age limit potentially in Marine Isotope Stage 6.en_US
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisherElsevieren_US
dc.rightsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internasjonal*
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.no*
dc.titleThe stratigraphy and formation of Middle Stone Age deposits in Cave 1B, Klasies River Main site, South Africa, with implications for the context, age, and cultural association of the KRM 41815/SAM-AP 6222 human mandibleen_US
dc.typeJournal articleen_US
dc.typePeer revieweden_US
dc.description.versionpublishedVersionen_US
dc.rights.holderCopyright 2023 The Author(s)en_US
dc.source.articlenumber103414en_US
cristin.ispublishedtrue
cristin.fulltextoriginal
cristin.qualitycode2
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103414
dc.identifier.cristin2175794
dc.source.journalJournal of Human Evolutionen_US
dc.relation.projectNorges forskningsråd: 262618en_US
dc.identifier.citationJournal of Human Evolution. 2023, 183, 103414.en_US
dc.source.volume183en_US


Files in this item

Thumbnail

This item appears in the following Collection(s)

Show simple item record

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internasjonal
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internasjonal