旧石器时代旷野遗址形成过程研究综述

遗址形成过程(或成因)研究是以地质考古学的研究手段为出发点,解读古人类遗址的形成和埋藏过程,其研究结果对正确解读遗址完整性和早期人类生存行为具有重要意义。该研究方向在中国尚未引起足够重视,这在一定程度上降低了我国古人类学和旧石器时代考古学学术研究的国际影响力。鉴于旷野遗址在保存早期人类化石及遗物方面的特殊地位,本文以地质考古学为出发点,系统分析有关旷野遗址形成过程研究所涉及的科学问题,对Glynn Isaac在东非创立的一套系统解读旷野遗址形成过程研究所涉及的指标进行梳理。此外,作者以古人类活动遗物的埋藏和空间分布特征为切入点,详细介绍目前从事旷野遗址成因研究所涉及的关键指标及学术意义,并对中国境内有关遗址成因研究以及旷野遗址形成过程研究的历史与现状进行讨论。     

蔚县盆地吉家庄旧石器遗址的形成过程

泥河湾盆地发育着我国北方第四纪典型的河湖相沉积体系,因其间富集众多早-中更新世旧石器时代遗址为学术界所关注。本文对泥河湾盆地蔚县吉家庄遗址（JJZ-B和JJZ-E地点）的遗址成因进行分析。地貌和沉积物特点表明,JJZ-B地点埋藏于湖滨相环境的湿地或沼泽环境,JJZ-E地点则属于湖滨相环境下的沙坝沉积体系。遗物的多项指标（遗物空间分布特点、石制品风化磨蚀状况、石制品技术组合与空间产状特征等）分析显示,JJZ-B地点属于近原地埋藏,形成过程中受到微弱的入湖片流改造,遗址完整性较高;JJZ-E地点的遗物连同砾石被湖滨片流搬运至遗址堆积区,后期受到了湖水的淘洗作用,显示异地埋藏的特点。研究表明,泥河湾古湖在中更新世仍保留有丰富的古人类活动信息,湖滨不同部位对遗址成因产生重要影响;该研究对正确解读古人类对吉家庄遗址不同地点的利用方式具有重要意义。     

蔚县盆地吉家庄旧石器遗址发掘报告

蔚县盆地地处泥河湾盆地(广义)东南部,其河湖相地层内保留丰富的早期人类活动信息,在研究中国北方更新世人类演化和生存行为领域具有重要意义。吉家庄遗址是近年来新发现和发掘的旧石器遗址,埋藏于吉家庄镇以北的河湖相地层内。遗址发现于2003年,中国科学院古脊椎动物与古人类研究所于2016年对其四个地点(JJZ-A、JJZ-B、JJZ-C和JJZ-D)进行考古发掘,揭露面积76m~2,出土190件石质标本和178件动物化石。遗址剖面堆积物以棕灰-棕黄-灰绿-灰黑色细砂、粉砂和黏土为主,文化遗物出自棕灰色-棕黄色细砂和粉砂层内。对代表性地点JJZ-B遗址成因(标本风化磨蚀状况、个体大小和空间聚集特征等)分析表明,遗址形成过程中仅受到湖泊片流改造且程度较弱。石制品原料均来自遗址东北约6km外的玉皇山,岩性以中基性火山岩为主。锤击法剥片和修理石器,剥片和修理相对较为彻底和精致,部分石片显示小台面且保留唇的特点,显示早期人类的石器技术相对泥河湾盆地早更新世模式1(Oldowan-like)工业较为进步。哺乳动物化石较破碎,地层对比显示古人类在该遗址活动的时间大致为中更新世。该遗址的发掘对研究古人类在蔚县盆地的生活方式以及探求泥河湾盆地古人类在早-中更新世石器技术演变及适应策略具有重要意义。     

安徽东至华龙洞遗址洞穴演化与古人类活动

安徽东至华龙洞因发现距今约30万年的古人类头骨化石和大量动物化石及石制品受到学术界广泛关注。本文对华龙洞遗址的地质、地貌、沉积物特点及洞穴演化过程与古人类活动的关系进行分析。华龙洞地处扬子陆块区西北缘,周边呈现低山—丘陵—湖泊平原地貌景观。与华龙洞遗址密切关联的岩溶洞穴,发育在上寒武统微晶灰岩和白云质灰岩岩系内,中更新以来的地壳运动和岩溶发育是其形成的主要营力。华龙洞遗址是一处坍塌的洞穴,其发育大致经历发育初期（中更新世早期甚至更早）—稳定发育期（中更新世中期）—坍塌埋藏期（中更新世中晚期）等三个阶段,岩溶发育和洞外溪谷的侵蚀使得原始洞穴和堆积物一起在重力作用下坍塌。洞穴坍塌沉积物主要包括围岩岩块与碎屑、各种岩溶沉积物和文化遗物,胶结坚硬,不规则地埋藏于裂隙和巨石之间。古人类在遗址的活动时间处在距今约30万年前的稳定发育期,石制品和骨骼表面痕迹证据表明,华龙洞古人类具备依据不同原料的特点采取砸击法与锤击法并用的技术策略;石片边缘的使用痕迹和动物骨骼表面痕迹显示,古人类在遗址可能进行过肢解动物的行为。本研究对揭示长江下游中更新世中晚期古人类演化与适应生存行为具有重要意义。     

泥河湾盆地板井子旧石器时代遗址的形成过程

板井子遗址是泥河湾盆地晚更新世早期的一处重要遗址,光释光年代为距今8~9万年。本文以2015年出土的考古材料为研究对象,从地层的沉积环境、考古材料本体的埋藏特点两个角度,对板井子遗址的形成过程进行分析。分析表明,主文化层第5层为近原地埋藏类型,水流作用对小尺寸标本的保存及标本的空间集聚特征影响较大,但石制品技术类型组合等基本的人类行为信息仍较为完整;第4、6层均为水流搬运产生的异地埋藏,蕴含的人类行为信息有所缺失。此项分析为提取、研究考古遗址所蕴含的古人类的居址选择、土地利用方式、考古材料使用废弃等方面的信息奠定了基础。     

湖北郧县肖沟旧石器时代遗址发掘简报

肖沟遗址位于湖北省郧阳区安阳镇钟家河村,埋藏于丹江口库区汉江左岸第二级堆积阶地,遗址所在地三面环水,北靠低山。2010年10月-12月对该地点进行抢救性发掘,揭露面积近1500 m~2,出土石制品413件。石制品类型包括石器、石核、石片、断块断片和碎块碎片等。古人类利用河流砾石,就地取材加工石制品;硬锤锤击是主要剥片方法;石制品总体以小型居多,石器主要以石片为毛坯,边刮器为主要类型。石制品特点显示石片工业特点。石制品类型以石片类和断块类为主体,石制品拼合率近10%,是一处原地埋藏的古人类遗址。通过与丹江口库区相关旧石器遗址的比较,结合地貌地层特点,推测该遗址形成于旧石器时代晚期。     

泥河湾盆地麻地沟E5旧石器地点的遗址成因与石器技术

麻地沟E5旧石器地点位于泥河湾盆地东端岑家湾台地古人类活动集中区,埋藏于泥河湾层灰白色-灰黄色细砂和粉砂层内。遗址发现于2007年,中国科学院古脊椎动物与古人类研究所于2014年对其进行考古发掘,揭露面积22m~2,出土143件石制品、8件动物碎骨和235件砾石。遗址成因(标本分布状况、原料与个体大小、风化磨蚀状况和标本空间聚集特征等)分析表明,遗址形成受到明显的水流搬运和改造。石制品原料均来自遗址周围1km~2范围内,岩性以硅质白云岩、燧石和火山岩为主;锤击法剥片和修理石器,剥片和修理随意,石制品形态无定型,显示旧石器时代早期奥杜威(Oldowan)工业特点。初步古地磁年代测定显示古人类在该遗址活动的时间大致为1.20 Ma。该遗址的发掘对研究泥河湾盆地早更新世遗址成因与古人类的生存方式具有重要意义。     

早、中更新世中国古人类年代序列与区域演化特征

我国早、中更新世古人类和旧石器遗址蕴含着丰富的早期人类活动和生存环境的背景信息,建立精确的遗址年代序列是分析古人类活动的基础。近二十年来,旧石器时代考古和测年研究为建立我国早期人类活动的年代框架提供了丰富的材料。本文分析了目前我国已发表的95个有独立测年数据的早、中更新世遗址,将其纳入黄土-古土壤年代框架,初步建立自200多万年至末次间冰期的古人类活动年代序列,根据它们的时空分布,进一步阐释了古人类在不同区域活动强度演变的时空特征。总体来看,这些遗址在泥河湾-周口店、秦岭山地、长江下游及长江流域以南（南方）四大区域呈现出聚集分布的特征;区域古人类活动强度主要表现在从早更新世的泥河湾-周口店、中更新世的秦岭山地、到中更新世晚期的长江中下游和南方区域的时空序列上。此外,仍有较多已发掘遗址缺少年代研究或存在测年问题,今后需要加强遗址的精确测年研究。     

沉积物特征与旧石器遗址的形成过程

考古遗址在自然因素下所经历的沉积、改造和再堆积过程,对于理解遗址完整历史至关重要,但迄今相关研究在中国旧石器遗址中开展得较为有限。本文在介绍遗址堆积与改造过程相关背景知识的基础上,对自然因素研究中涉及到的最为关键和核心的对象之一——沉积物及其常用分析指标（粒度、磁化率、地球化学元素、矿物组成和土壤微形态）进行阐述,并以许昌人遗址和伞顶盖遗址为例说明相关指标的应用情况。沉积物分析指标侧重从微观角度揭示旧石器遗址的堆积与改造过程,因此,我们还需结合宏观尺度下的遗址沉积地层、地貌发育和环境演变等特征,以及考古标本本身的一系列信息对遗址在自然因素影响下的形成过程进行综合分析和判断。     

甘肃徐家城旧石器遗址石制品拼合研究

徐家城遗址是甘肃省新发现的含丰富旧石器文化遗物的遗址,主要埋藏于水洛河二级阶地上覆的马兰黄土中,年代在距今4.3~2.3万年间。徐家城遗址的拼合分析显示,4B、4C层剥片与石器加工行为是石制品空间分布形成的主要原因,但可能存在遗址使用时古人类对石制品位置改变的行为;4A层石制品零散分布可能反映了此时遗址处于古人类活动的边缘地带。遗址剥片方法以硬锤锤击法为主,石核剥片序列主要以转向为主,古人类对石料进行单层或多层开发;同时部分石器破碎后古人类可能对其进行再利用。平面分布显示发掘区内可能存在两个相对集中的剥片区域,并且古人类在同一区域剥片和加工石器。然因遗址石制品原料性质、发掘面积等局限性,拼合分析的优势并未在此项研究中尽现。今后此类研究应结合其他研究方法,综合多方面信息解释遗址形成过程、石器技术及遗址空间利用方式。     

浅议古人类活动遗址的动物埋藏学研究方法

随着学科的发展,有关古人类活动遗址的研究手段逐渐多样化,学者们从不同研究视角分别揭示了早期人类对遗址的利用行为。近年来,作为古人类行为研究的重要分支,动物埋藏研究在阐释遗址形成过程及其背后的影响因素方面起到了重要作用。本文简要梳理了对保存有动物遗存的古人类活动遗址进行动物埋藏研究的主要方法和思路,同时,文章介绍了部分动物埋藏的典型模型与经典案例,以此对动物埋藏研究中存在的缺陷与可能的解决方式进行探讨。此外,作者对动物埋藏研究的方法演进进行了简单回顾,为解决遗址中出现的多个埋藏因素相互影响而导致的混乱及重叠现象提供了可供参考的研究思路;在此基础上,结合中国古人类活动遗址的相关研究进展,本文也对中国考古遗址相关研究的思路和方向提出了建议。     

What's in a beach? Soil micromorphology of sediments from the Lower Paleolithic site of 'Ubeidiya, Israel

A micromorphological study of archaeological sediments from the early Pleistocene site of 'Ubeidiya (Jordan Valley, Israel) was conducted to provide microenvironmental detail for the hominin occupation contexts and investigate site formation issues. Previous research shows that the hominin groups occupied the marshes and pebbly beaches at the shores of a lake during a regressive period, but given that some portions of the lithic and faunal assemblages are abraded and others fresh, there remains a question of whether the archaeological assemblages are in situ or reworked, and if reworked, by what mechanisms and from where. The rates of sedimentation within the regressive cycle, by which we can learn about the frequency and duration of exposed surfaces amenable for hominin occupation is also unknown. Finally, the artificial nature of some of the pebbly layers has been questioned. The micromorphological analysis yielded the identification of twelve microfacies; the majority of these represent fluvially derived floodplain soils or distal mudflow deposits, and a minor number are sediments of lacustrine origin: mudflats and shallow subaqueous sediments. These represent the natural habitats of the 'Ubeidiya hominins and might serve as a reference to similar contexts of other early hominin sites. The sedimentary model proposed here entails the rapid deposition of fluvially derived low-energy sediments at and around the shoreline, followed by prolonged periods of exposure, during which surfaces stabilized within a relatively wet, marshy environment. This interpretation suggests that the abraded portions of the archaeological assemblages are a result of prolonged surface exposure rather than high-energy transport from a distant source or to wave reworking at the shoreline, and supports the consideration of these assemblages as archaeological palimpsests, with locally reworked fresh and abraded elements. No micromorphological evidence supporting anthropogenic agency in the formation of the pebbly layers was found. The entire regressive cycle entailed unvarying climatic conditions with seasonal fluctuations and episodic lacustrine incursions, and with a trend towards arid conditions in the end.     

The Paleolithic of northwestern Zagros. 2012–2019 MAFGS Survey: Data and preliminary results

Between 2012 and 2019, the surveys conducted by the French archaeological mission of the Soulaimanih Governorate in the Rania and Peshadar plains of Iraqi Kurdistan, previously devoid of Paleolithic records, have yielded numerous lithic assemblages from open-air sites, caves and rock-shelters. We present here six lithic assemblages from the three districts surveyed, Rania, Peshdar and Dukan. Despite the absence of chronostratigraphic contexts and the still fragmentary data, the first typo-technological analyses carried out allow us to propose a first techno-cultural attribution to the Paleolithic and, more specifically for some assemblages, to the Middle Paleolithic. Among the sites uncovered, it is certainly the Paleolithic shelter of Sarsyan-Rostam Agha that was the most distinctive and which represents, with the Shanidar cave, one of the rare Paleolithic sites preserved in the northwestern Zagros. Its preserved Paleolithic sequence, rich in archaeological remains, and explored in a test-pit conducted in 2018, shows clear affinities with the Mousterian Zagros industries, a well-defined entity based on sites such as Shanidar, Bisitun, Warwasi and Mar Tarik.     

Mousterian technology and settlement dynamics in the site of Hummal (Syria)

The site of Hummal is one of several artesian springs in the El Kowm area (Central Syria) that became the focus of archaeological research at the beginning of the 1980s. The archaeological sequence spans the whole Paleolithic period and the spring is therefore a reference site for the Paleolithic in the interior part of the Levant. Archaeological remains are found in a more than 15 m thick succession of deposits that contain Lower, Middle and Upper Paleolithic assemblages. The present paper addresses archaeological and geological data, which were recovered during recent years’ excavations of Mousterian deposits. With a compiled stratigraphy of over 6 m and more than 30 archaeological levels, the Hummal Mousterian sequence is especially apt for the reconstruction of changing site-use patterns through time. Lithic analysis helps to elucidate technological traditions as well as organization and the changing ways in which mobile foragers used a site in the context of an arid steppe. Results contribute further to existing models of Levantine Middle Paleolithic land-use strategies and demography in the time span of between 130,000 and 50,000 BP, and partly contradict existing interpretations. Two different lithic industries were defined, which correspond to a C- and B-type Levantine Mousterian according to the three-stage Tabun model. The discovery of a C-type Mousterian in the lower deposits further extends the geographical range of this cultural facies into the interior arid part of the Levant. An increasing importance and standardization of Levallois points is observable and thereby supports models that postulate a growing specialization of hunting techniques at the end of the Middle Paleolithic.     

垩质年轮法在旧石器时代动物考古学中的应用

在旧石器时代考古遗址研究中,动物的死亡年龄往往能够反映古人类的生存能力及猎物选择趋向;死亡季节则是研究古人类人口数量变化、聚居模式等生存适应问题的重要途径。牙齿垩质切片研究表明,垩质的沉积与树木年轮的生长相似,具有较强的季节规律性和终生生长的特点,可被用于同时推断动物的死亡年龄与季节。垩质年轮法在国外已经有不少较为成功的应用范例,但由于其自身局限及我国旧石器时代动物考古学的发展状况,这一方法至今并未得到较好的应用。本文主要介绍垩质年轮法原理及其在旧石器时代考古学研究中的应用实例,并对该方法在国内遗址相关研究中的应用前景做出展望。     

Les relations entre l’Extrême-Orient eurasien et le nord de l’archipel du Japon au Paléolithique

The aim of this paper is to present a review of current knowledge concerning the Paleolithic records and the related natural environmental setting in the Eurasian Far East and Hokkaido, located at the northern tip of the Japanese islands. At present, it is quite difficult to answer whether the archaic humans dispersed from Siberia and northern China across the Amur River basin and Sakhalin into Hokkaido or not, because there is no reliable evidence indicating the Lower and Middle Paleolithic in Hokkaido. We demonstrate that the Upper Paleolithic assemblages in Hokkaido can be divided into at least three phases such as the early Upper Paleolithic (EUP), the middle Upper Paleolithic (MUP), and the late Upper Paleolithic (LUP), based on a synthesis of available radiocarbon dates and the techno-typological characteristics of lithic assemblages. It is reasonable to suggest that the lithic assemblage from the Rubenosawa site, located in northern Hokkaido, and some of lithic assemblages at the transition from the Middle to Upper Paleolithic or the initial Upper Paleolithic (IUP) in Siberia share the relative similarities of techno-typological attributes in the reduction sequences, although the reliable radiocarbon dates have not been obtained from the Rubenosawa site unfortunately. Also, the emergence of microblade technology at the MUP in Hokkaido, such as represented by the microblade assemblage recovered from the Kashiwadai-1 site, central Hokkaido, indicates a close interaction between the Eurasian Far East and Hokkaido. As a result, the comparison of archaeological evidence in these regions provides us with a suggestion that the appearance and development of the Upper Paleolithic assemblages in Hokkaido were sometimes associated with the human dispersions and the mutual contacts crossing between the Eurasian Far East and Hokkaido.