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Environment, climate & sea-level changes
Routes of colonisation
Potential methods of travel
Archaeological / chronological patterns of colonisation
Early human behaviour 3
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Period of colonisation - time of rapid environmental change
Globally cooling and marked environmental instability
People had to cope with:
Variability in resource density / distribution
At times new opportunities enabling colonisation, others
resource base drastically declined
Level of climatic / environmental instability would have had a
direct impact
4
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Composition of worlds oceans indicative of climate change
Oxygen isotopes reflects warm vs. cold conditions (e.g. ice
sheet melting
Last glacial cycle = 120,000 years
5
Last interglacial climate similar to today
Recent millennia warm conditions
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Sea-levels varied throughout Pleistocene & Holocene
Changes relate to expansion / contraction of northern
continental ice sheets
70 kyr - ocean dropped to ~80m below current levels
Exposed land in the Arafura Sea, joining Australia & New
Guinea
6
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Temps 6-100 lower, much of earths water trapped in polar ice
sheets
Pleistocene Sahul added 2.5 million sq km
Land bridges connected New Guinea, Australia & Tasmania
Covered 11 million sq km = sub-Saharan Africa
Exposed land tropical savannah & woodland
7
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8
Puritjarra 35(40)ka
Huon Terraces 52ka
Kosipe 37(41)ka
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Genetic & archaeological evidence spread of Homo sapiens ~50
100,000 BP into India & Asia
Extension of global dispersal language users with good problem
solving skills (e.g. large water crossings)
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10
>46,000 BP
Hunting large river fish, arboreal primates, pig, large
monitors
Exploiting poisonous tubers & nuts
Sago use
Bamboo & rattan processing
Likely early forest burning after 50kya
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11
38-42,000 BP
Tuna in deposits >42kya deep sea fishing
Radial core technology (not pebble tools)
Shell beads & shell fishhooks in Pleistocene levels
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12
52-61,000 BP
Flight of raised coral terraces, tectonic uplift
Each terrace fronted lagoons & reef
Flaked, ground & waisted stone axes - found throughout
northern Australia & Melanesia (>~40kyr)
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Is 45,000 BP the minimum or maximum age?
Early colonisation (long chronology) model
Colonisation between 50 & 60,000 BP e.g. Jones; Thorne
Based on Luminescence dating by association
13
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Late colonisation (short chronology) model
Colonisation ~45,000 BP e.g. Allen & OConnell
Based on radiocarbon estimates & interpretation of
significant disturbance
Key sites estimates close to or more than 40,000 BP -
distributed across the continent
14
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15
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Malakunanja - one of the few deep & continuous stratigraphic
sequences?
Allen & OConnell question this for a number of reasons:
They extend the known time span by 10 15,000 years
Absence of complimentary evidence
Strength of association with cultural material suspect
(disturbance etc)
Inconsistencies between C14, AMS & TL ages
16
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More important issues:
Absence of comparative control on TL dates older than 24,000
BP
A possible hiatus in accumulation between 190 230 cm
Sharp variations in accumulation rates
These relate to how the archaeological & radiometric data
was interpreted
17
45 (38-52) kyr
52 (46-60) kyr 61 (51-71) kyr
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18
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OSL dating of sediments returned ages of 45 50,000 BP at level
of lowest artefact
Allen & OConnell argued for the effects of post-depositional
movement & animal disturbance
19
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Animal burrows -only upper units
Shawcross mapped vertical distances between conjoined
artefacts
Reflects position of original land surface - no vertical
displacement
Age estimates of 45 50 kyr appear quite robust
20
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2 major routes with several terminating options
Reduced ocean distances comparatively larger / closer target
21 Sahul
Sunda
Wallacean Archipelago
But Sahul separated from southeast Asia by major biogeographic
barrier the Wallacean Archipelago
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Northern route: Sunda shelf Sulawesi Birds Head / Aru
Islands
All terminating options involve water crossings of 65km or
more
22
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South: southern China Timor Sahul shelf / Aru Islands
Seen as more attractive option initially shorter distances
But, more than 65km in terminal stages
23
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Wallacea not investigated in enough detail
People came across from the northwest the exact route remains
open to conjecture more evidence needed
Either route requires island hopping with open water travel:
8 17 separate substantial crossings
Both with 1 leg >65km
At least 3 legs >30km
24
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Routes originally proposed by Joseph Birdsell (1977)
Trace the shortest possible water crossings available
Target height visibility of islands measured by elevation
Target width measured as island width 25
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Colonisation required watercraft & the technology to build
them
Some looked to historical records as a technological analogy
Bark canoes
Dugout & outrigger canoes
Others suggest more sophisticated vessels were used
26
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Archaeological evidence for early watercraft is scarce
But the idea of technologically & culturally unsophisticated
people is difficult to sustain
Consider the extent & success of migrations by capable &
highly adaptable people across large areas to this point
27
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Maritime capabilities may not have needed to take the shortest,
easiest route
Distribution of resources (acknowledged by Birdsell)
Complications / competition for resources by other hominid
species
28
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How did people disperse across the continent after arriving in
Australia?
This is something that could have been achieved in a number of
ways:
Radiating or saturated settlement model
Coastal colonisation model
The well watered regions first model
29
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The Saturated Settlement Model
Birdsell (1957) - uniform & rapid distribution, 1,300 -
2,200 years to settle entire continent
Idea that people were adapted to maritime lifestyle e.g. coastal
zone of island southeast Asia
Population increase forced rapid changes in culture &
technology = people exploiting inland resources
30
>40,000
40,000- present
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Coastal colonisation or marginal settlement model
Bowdler (1970s) - argued people stayed with familiar settlement
& subsistence patterns
As people moved through southeast Asia along coast & across
islands economic continuation
Only occupied the interior when sea-level rise forced them off
the coastal plains ~12,000 BP
31
>40,000
40,000-12,000
12,000-present
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Well watered regions first
Horton (1981) - people moved along well-watered areas first +
large stretches of coast avoiding major barrier deserts
Still suggests that people largely avoided large areas of the
inland until much later
32
Secondary route of desert migration
Primary route of coastal colonisation
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Many Pleistocene sites found during the 1960s - 1970s were close
to the present coastline
Several sites found in inland areas that could not have been
occupied by coastally-focused people
33
Evidence now suggests relatively rapid settlement
Counters marginal settlement models, small founding population,
& the idea of simple culture / technology
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Suggestion that the archaeological evidence provides a minimum
age for arrival of humans
The oldest irrefutable evidence represents a time after
colonisation
If people occupied these sites 45 50,000 years ago this is the
latest colonisation could have occurred and is the minimum age
34
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Colonisation is considered by some to be older than 45,000 5,000
years
This is an age generally accepted by most, even the
conservative, for sites like Malakunanja & Lake Mungo
It is possible people landed on the continental shelf 45-50kyr;
more likely between 50-60kyr??
The evidence we have might represent expansion from areas of
initial colonisation away from coasts into higher areas
35
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36
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Quite a lot of debate surrounding timing of initial
colonisation
Less so when dealing with what people did once in Australia
Difficulty of building broad interpretations:
Chronological issues are central to the investigation of
Pleistocene occupation;
Little material / sparse evidence available from the earliest
periods of occupation;
37
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Arid zone research by Smith (Central Australia), Hiscock
(northwest Queensland) & Veth (Western Desert)
Distinct changes in landscape use with environment & climate
change
No single or general pattern of occupation in these areas
38
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A number of sites in the arid zone not occupied during the
LGM
Localised abandonment in:
Lake Eyre Basin & Strzelecki Desert
Nullarbor Plain (near Allens Cave)
Central Australian Ranges
Sandy Desert
Size of abandoned area not clear some regions completely
abandoned others partially
May have been gradual succession of retreat 39
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Peter Veths Islands in the Interior model
Based on ecological principles, biogeographic models &
archaeological evidence
Model is compatible on a broad scale with the available
evidence
At a finer scale, there is greater variability
40
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Barrier: major sand-ridge deserts
Refuge: uplands & riverine / gorge systems coordinated
drainage
Corridor: all other areas (e.g. gibber plains
41
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Puritjarra rockshelter, Central Australia - example of LGM
territorial re-organisation
Smith argues for resident regional population on archaeological
& palaeoenvironmental grounds
Interpretation of periodic & regular use, although at lower
population densities
42
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43
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Interpretations based on:
Chronological patterns
Changes in artefact discard rates
Structure of the stone artefacts assemblage
Long-term ecology & biogeography
Contraction of territory during LGM - focus on the predictable
resources closer to the shelter
44
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Within this general pattern, several phases of economic
re-organisation
Stone & ochre from different sources were variably exploited
at different times
Karrku ochre (150km NW) used from 30,000 BP
Ulpanyali ochre (65km S) dominates during LGM
Reduced risk - local & readily available resources 45
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The Puritjarra interpretations contrast well with the evidence
from Kulpi Mara (~120km SE)
Thorley interprets chronology & sequence of artefact discard
= sporadic use of the Palmer River catchment responding to
short-term environmental variability
46
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Most artefacts accumulated between first occupation (~35,000 BP)
& 24,000 BP
24,000 - 12,000 BP - low rates of sedimentation / artefact
discard - increasing aridity
Absence of occupation during the LGM
Several phases of local abandonment
Possibly correlated with deteriorating climatic conditions
47
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Differences might relate to availability of water
Kulpi Mara - water - constrained seasonally /
chronologically
Short-term movement in & out of the area with localised
environmental changes
Puritjarra located close to semi-permanent & ephemeral
waters
Resident population - LGM possible - very low intensity
48
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Number of sites in upland valleys that date close to 40,000
BP
Archaeological record indicates people entered Tasmania
37-39,000 years ago
Behaviour changed in response to environmental/social
conditions
49
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Evidence comes from 40 rockshelters & open sites with
exceptional preservation
50
Warreen Cave: 34,780 18,290 BP
ORS 7: 30,840 2,500 BP
Nunamira Cave: 30,420 11,630 BP
Acheron Cave: 29,800 13,410 BP
Bone Cave: 29,000 13,700 BP
Kutikina Cave: 19,770 14,840 BP
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Patterns of faunal exploitation also tells us about use of the
area, especially during the LGM
Studies have focussed on species distribution, body part
representation & seasonality subsistence strategies
51
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Dominant prey species was Bennetts wallaby around 70% of fauna
recovered from excavated sites
Marrow substitute for carbohydrates high densities of long
bones
52
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Pleistocene vegetation limited & fertile grassland patches
surrounded by low shrub & heath
Attractive to Bennetts wallaby unlike larger macropods this
species congregates in large numbers
Sedentary animals with a small range (15-20 hectares) moving
less than 30m every 2-3 years 53
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Cosgrove - Deliberately scheduled, short-term & regular use
during LGM
Size/age structure, growth rates & breeding seasons of
Bennetts wallaby populations (teeth) Autumn & late winter /
early spring exploitation
This was the coldest period of each year!! 54
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55
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Pleistocene economies changed through time & space
Climatic oscillation cycle of change every 3,000 years
Southeast Tasmania drier conditions meant less predictable
resources encounter based hunting
Central & southwest Tasmania as conditions changed, economic
strategy = southeast, or region abandoned
56
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Antiquity & diversity of ideology & social meaning in
Pleistocene Australia
Grave goods e.g. shells in some Kow Swamp burials
Differences in the treatment of individual bodies, such
cremation or interment
57
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The burial of the WLH3 individual from Lake Mungo is significant
as one of the earliest burials known Australia
~42,000 BP (60kyr also proposed)
Example of the early social use of red ochre associated with
rituals, as well as burial rituals
Dark red staining noted in a wide distribution around the
skeleton
Red staining interpreted as scattering red ochre over the body
in the prepared grave
58
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WLH1 - individual cremated as a complete & fully fleshed
corpse - dates to ~42,000 BP
After burning remains were broken - especially the skull
Ash & broken bones were gathered & placed in a small
hole beneath, or immediately beside the funeral pyre
59
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The interesting thing is the antiquity of compound burial
practices
More simple burials are known across the world
Compound processes of disposal of the dead are less well
documented until the more recent past
The Mungo cremation is still the oldest known cremation in the
world
60
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Further evidence for social meaning from several Pleistocene
sites
Ornaments of shell & stone recovered from deposits in
Western Australia
Mandu Mandu Creek
Devils Lair
Riwi 61
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Mandu Mandu Creek - ochre fragments estimated to be more than
37,000 years old
22 perforated & shaped cone shells - strung on thread
Abrasion on inside surface of perforations possibly from thread
- shells selected for similar size and shapes
Later Pleistocene layers - Pearl shell, tusk shell & ochre -
all materials associated with decorative items
62
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Devils Lair - three beads on polished macropod fibulae - dates
between 12,000 and 19,000 BP
Associated with stone artefacts & mammal remains
A perforated piece of stone also interpreted as a Pleistocene
ornament - possible pendant on fibre string
63
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Riwi - ten beads of tusk shell in layer about 34,000 BP
Shell possibly strung by fibre - part of which preserved on the
end of one of the beads - beads with ochre residue
Riwi beads made from exotic material - transported ~ 300 km
Consistent with either individuals travelling across large
territories or obtaining shells through exchange networks
64
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Body ornaments form non-verbal communication that might indicate
social value or difference
May have conveyed social information, such as signifying status
or membership, gender or marital status or wealth
Context where population size and/or social interaction made
visual communication of identity & relationships useful
Movement of rare materials over large distances indicates early
operation of widespread social networks involving exchange
65
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We see a high degree of variability & levels of complexity
through a number of different lines of evidence across Pleistocene
Australasia
We have evidence for rapid dispersal across virtually all
environmental zones on the continent following initial
occupation
People modified elements of their settlement and subsistence
strategies to suit the environments they were living in
66
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The evidence we have for social, ideological and ritual meaning
is relatively ephemeral & difficult to interpret
But we have enough evidence to suggest that the belief systems
of the Pleistocene were also dynamic
The available evidence suggests that Pleistocene occupation in
Australia cant be defined as simple or conservative!
67
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68
Slide Number 1ARCA1000 Early HumansKey IssuesEnvironmental
ContextClimate & Sea LevelsSlide Number 6Slide Number 7Timing
of ColonisationSlide Number 9Niah CaveJerimalaiHuon PeninsulaLong
vs. Short ChronologySlide Number 14Malakunanja IISlide Number
16Slide Number 17Lake MungoSlide Number 19Slide Number
20Colonisation RoutesSlide Number 22Slide Number 23Slide Number
24Slide Number 25Watercraft?Slide Number 27What we dont know
Australian Settlement ModelsSlide Number 30Slide Number 31Slide
Number 32Slide Number 33ImplicationsImplicationsSlide Number
36Early Occupation in AustraliaSettlement of Inland AustraliaSlide
Number 39Slide Number 40Slide Number 41Puritjarra & Kulpi
MaraSlide Number 43Slide Number 44Slide Number 45Slide Number
46Slide Number 47Slide Number 48TasmaniaSlide Number 50Slide Number
51Slide Number 52Slide Number 53Slide Number 54Slide Number 55Slide
Number 56Ritualistic Burial PracticesSlide Number 58Slide Number
59Slide Number 60Pleistocene OrnamentationSlide Number 62Slide
Number 63Slide Number 64Slide Number 65Pleistocene
AustralasiaPleistocene AustralasiaSlide Number 68