Issues of phytolith taphonomy at Palaeolithic sites: Investigation and results from Attirampakkam, India

International audienceInvestigating the taphonomy of phytoliths at open-air archaeological sites is essential for reconstructing past land cover and assessing the plant resources available to hominins, particularly when other indicators (e.g., pollen) are scarce. Here we analyse phytolith abundance and diversity encountered in distinct ‘reservoirs’ at and around the Palaeolithic site of Attirampakkam, South India: (1) in the present-day vegetation (database of 134 species), generating on that basis a fine classification of species-specific phytolith morphotypes; (2) in the topsoil (surface); and (3) at greater soil depths above the archaeological layers (subsurface). We then compare the data to results previously obtained from the deeper underlying archaeological layers. Comparison of the assemblages retrieved from the different reservoirs shows that morphotypes most likely to get carried over from the living plants to the oldest fossil specimens were subsets of herbaceous taxa (Poaceae and Cyperaceae) and a few woody monocotyledons (Arecaceae). The high fidelity of these taxa ranks them among the most reliable for conducting palaeoenvironmental studies at this site, and perhaps more widely in southern India. Provided those taxonomically traceable, non-redundant and non-multiple morphotypes are prioritised over herbaceous dicotyledons and most woody taxa, inferences about environmental conditions and changes at the time of hominin occupation during the Pleistocene can be made with a fair margin of confidence

Beyond Handaxes: Investigating Lower Palaeolithic Cultural Variability in South-East India

Here, we present the results of recent investigations into spatio-temporal variability in Lower Palaeolithic technologies in India. The research focuses on the diverse technological strategies adopted in SE India that continue from the Lower Palaeolithic through the transition to the Middle Palaeolithic. The arguments for diversity and change in lithic technologies are primarily constructed around evidence from the site of Attirampakkam (ATM), Chennai, Tamil Nadu where a very early Acheulian presence (~1.07–1.7 Ma) has been recorded, succeeded by transitions and the establishment of an early MP culture (beginning around 385 ± 64 ka). The MP culture prevailed at the site until 172 ± 41 ka. To situate the cultural trajectories reconstructed at Attirampakkam in a wider regional context, research was undertaken at the nearby site of Sendrayanpayalam (SEN). This research project led to the discovery of stratified horizons containing a sequence of Lower Palaeolithic assemblages. This paper focuses on the different horizons identified at the site of SEN, and explores aspects of the Lower Palaeolithic that differ in terms of assemblage structure and technology between the two sites. We present a preliminary introduction to the different methodologies adopted and emerging results from the research program. We analyse supporting evidence from the diversity of lithic reduction sequences encountered in the stratigraphy, and interpret hominin behavioural variability at the site. We note that the technological sequences observed at ATM and SEN are similar to those reported from Africa and in Eurasia, where they have been linked to significant behavioural change related to the timing of successive population dispersals out of Africa

Beyond Handaxes: Investigating Lower Palaeolithic Cultural Variability in South-East India

Here, we present the results of recent investigations into spatio-temporal variability in Lower Palaeolithic technologies in India. The research focuses on the diverse technological strategies adopted in SE India that continue from the Lower Palaeolithic through the transition to the Middle Palaeolithic. The arguments for diversity and change in lithic technologies are primarily constructed around evidence from the site of Attirampakkam (ATM), Chennai, Tamil Nadu where a very early Acheulian presence (~1.07–1.7 Ma) has been recorded, succeeded by transitions and the establishment of an early MP culture (beginning around 385 ± 64 ka). The MP culture prevailed at the site until 172 ± 41 ka. To situate the cultural trajectories reconstructed at Attirampakkam in a wider regional context, research was undertaken at the nearby site of Sendrayanpayalam (SEN). This research project led to the discovery of stratified horizons containing a sequence of Lower Palaeolithic assemblages. This paper focuses on the different horizons identified at the site of SEN, and explores aspects of the Lower Palaeolithic that differ in terms of assemblage structure and technology between the two sites. We present a preliminary introduction to the different methodologies adopted and emerging results from the research program. We analyse supporting evidence from the diversity of lithic reduction sequences encountered in the stratigraphy, and interpret hominin behavioural variability at the site. We note that the technological sequences observed at ATM and SEN are similar to those reported from Africa and in Eurasia, where they have been linked to significant behavioural change related to the timing of successive population dispersals out of Africa

ESR analyses for teeth from the open-air site at Attirampakkam, India: Clues to complex U uptake and paleoenvironmental change

In open-air sites, diagenetic alteration makes teeth difficult to analyze with electron spin resonance (ESR). Despite strong diagenetic alteration, three ungulate teeth from Pleistocene fluvial sediment in the open-air Paleolithic site at Attirampakkam, Tamil Nadu, India, were analyzed using standard and isochron ESR. Diagenetic alteration features in two teeth indicated rapid submergence in quiet saline to hypersaline water, following a short subaerial exposure, while the third remained constantly buried under reducing conditions. Geochemical signatures and ESR data all indicate that the teeth experienced at least three independent U uptake events during diagenesis, including two that occurred long after burial

The evolution and history of human populations in South Asia: inter-disciplinary studies in archaeology, biological anthropology, linguistics and genetics

South Asia is home to a diverse range of prehistoric and contemporary cultures that include foragers, pastoralists, and farmers. In this book, archaeologists, biological anthropologists, geneticists and linguists are brought together in order to provide a comprehensive account of the history and evolution of human populations residing in the subcontinent. A wide range of topics and issues are addressed in this book, including hominin adaptations, behaviours, and dispersals; the origin and spread of food producing economies; and the cultural, biological and genetic relationship of foragers and settled communities. New theories, methodologies and interpretations presented in this book are bound to have a profound effect on the way in which the cultural record of South Asia is perceived and how this evolutionary history relates to events in the wider world