Radiometric dating of the Earlier Stone Age sequence in excavation I at Wonderwerk Cave, South Africa: preliminary results.

We present here the results of 44 paleomagnetic measurements, and single cosmogenic burial and optically stimulated luminescence ages for the Earlier Stone Age deposits from Wonderwerk Cave, Northern Cape, South Africa. The resulting paleomagnetic sequence: N>R>N>R>N constrains the Earlier Stone Age strata in this part of the site to between approximately 0.78-1.96 Ma. A single cosmogenic date of approximately 2.0 Ma from the base of the section offers some corroboration for the paleomagnetic sequence. Preliminary results indicate that the small lithic assemblage from the basal stratum may contain an Oldowan facies. This is overlain by several strata containing Acheulean industries. The preliminary radiometric dates reported here place the onset of the Acheulean at this site to approximately 1.6 Ma, which is roughly contemporaneous with that of East Africa.

The Ysterfontein 1 Middle Stone Age site, South Africa, and early human exploitation of coastal resources.

Human fossils and the genetics of extant human populations indicate that living people derive primarily from an African population that lived within the last 200,000 years. Yet it was only approximately 50,000 years ago that the descendants of this population spread to Eurasia, where they swamped or replaced the Neanderthals and other nonmodern Eurasians. Based on archaeological observations, the most plausible hypothesis for the delay is that Africans and Eurasians were behaviorally similar until 50,000 years ago, and it was only at this time that Africans developed a behavioral advantage. The archaeological findings come primarily from South Africa, where they suggest that the advantage involved much more effective use of coastal resources. Until now, the evidence has come mostly from deeply stratified caves on the south (Indian Ocean) coast. Here, we summarize results from recent excavations at Ysterfontein 1, a deeply stratified shelter in a contrasting environment on the west (Atlantic) coast. The Ysterfontein 1 samples of human food debris must be enlarged for a full comparison to samples from other relevant sites, but they already corroborate two inferences drawn from south coast sites: (i) coastal foragers before 50,000 years ago did not fish routinely, probably for lack of appropriate technology, and (ii) they collected tortoises and shellfish less intensively than later people, probably because their populations were smaller.

Emergence of modern human behavior: Middle Stone Age engravings from South Africa.

In the Eurasian Upper Paleolithic after about 35,000 years ago, abstract or depictional images provide evidence for cognitive abilities considered integral to modern human behavior. Here we report on two abstract representations engraved on pieces of red ochre recovered from the Middle Stone Age layers at Blombos Cave in South Africa. A mean date of 77,000 years was obtained for the layers containing the engraved ochres by thermoluminescence dating of burnt lithics, and the stratigraphic integrity was confirmed by an optically stimulated luminescence age of 70,000 years on an overlying dune. These engravings support the emergence of modern human behavior in Africa at least 35,000 years before the start of the Upper Paleolithic.