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Site formation processes at Zhoukoudian, China.
P Goldberg1, S Weiner, O Bar-Yosef
1Department of Archaeology, Boston University, 675 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA. paulberg@bu.edu
Journal of Human Evolution
|October 30, 2001
Summary
Site formation processes at Zhoukoudian were studied using micromorphology and FTIR. Early evidence of fire in Layer 10 is a water-laid deposit, not from combustion, indicating an open site environment.
Area of Science:
- Paleoanthropology
- Geology
- Archaeology
Background:
- Zhoukoudian is famous for early human remains and fire evidence.
- Detailed studies on sediment accumulation processes have been limited.
- Previous research is over 70 years old.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate site formation processes at Zhoukoudian Locality 1.
- To analyze the origin and deposition of sediments.
- To re-evaluate the evidence of early fire.
Main Methods:
- Field observations of the extant section.
- Soil micromorphology analysis.
- Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR) of sediments.
Main Results:
- Sediments in Layers 10-3 are primarily water-deposited reworked loess.
- The "earliest evidence of fire" in Layer 10 is a water-laid organic-rich deposit.
- Significant diagenesis, including calcite and apatite precipitation, and mineral alteration, occurred in multiple layers, especially Layer 4.
Conclusions:
- The "fire evidence" is a result of water deposition, not combustion.
- Sediments were largely sourced externally, indicating an open site.
- Site formation involved extensive water deposition and diagenesis, consistent with earlier findings.