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New Chronology and Stratigraphy for Kathu Pan 6, South Africa

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Abstract

Kathu Pan 6 (Northern Cape Province) is an open-air site exposed by sinkhole activity that includes a Middle Stone Age Howiesons Poort (HP) component in a stratigraphic sequence that also includes Later Stone Age, early Middle Stone Age, and Earlier Stone Age (Fauresmith) assemblages. Here, we present the dating of the Kathu Pan 6 sequence using multiple luminescence signals: optically stimulated luminescence (blue OSL) and thermally transferred OSL (TT-OSL) on quartz; and the infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) post IR-IR290 signal on potassium feldspar. The results obtained from analyses of different minerals and signals for the archaeological deposits do not always conform but the quartz OSL provides the most accurate set of ages for the HP at KP6 (between 100 ± 6 and 74 ± 5 ka). This age range places the KP6 HP earlier than any of the scenarios considered plausible by Jacobs and Roberts (Journal of Human Evolution, 107, 1–13 2017) but fits well with the extended duration for the HP at Diepkloof proposed by Tribolo et al. (Journal of Archaeological Science, 36(3) 730–39 2009) and promoted by Feathers (Journal of Archaeological Science, 63, 164–174 2017). Two OSL ages bracket the Later Stone Age Wilton industry at KP6, placing it between 5.7 ± 0.3 ka and 2.3 ± 0.1 ka. These fit with known ages for the Wilton and place the KP6 occupation contemporary with Strata 4c–3b at Wonderwerk Cave.

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Acknowledgments

This research builds upon the fieldwork conducted by the late Peter Beaumont. His invaluable contribution to the archaeology of the region has made our work possible. All fieldwork was carried out under permit by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA). Thanks to David Morris for his helpful advice, and to Steven JH Walker for coordinating excavation and collecting the spatial data. Thanks also to Yael Yakobi for her help preparing samples in the lab. We are grateful to our many field assistants over the 2015 and 2016 seasons: Magdalena Sobol, Megan Macleod, Siyun Guo, Steven Mcphail, Amy Fox, Samantha Easy, James Kilpatrick, Candice Koopowitz, Matthew Shaw, and Michaela Ecker. Further assistance from Molefi Mokgoje, Bokamoso Ntehelang, Thebe Louw, and Niels Namusa was also invaluable to the excavation. Finally, we would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their detailed review and insightful comments which improved the manuscript.

Funding

Funding for this research was provided by the Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Paleontological Scientific Trust to MC, the Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University, and the Ontario Graduate Scholarship to VL.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, University of Toronto, 22 Russell Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3B1, Canada

    Vasilija Lukich & Sharon Cowling

  2. Geological Survey of Israel, 32 Yesha’ayahu Leibowitz Street, Jerusalem, 9692100, Israel

    Naomi Porat & Galina Faershtein

  3. Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, 91904, Israel

    Galina Faershtein

  4. Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, 19 Russell Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2S2, Canada

    Michael Chazan

  5. Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, 1 Jan Smuts Avenue, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Michael Chazan

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  1. Vasilija Lukich
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Lukich, V., Porat, N., Faershtein, G. et al. New Chronology and Stratigraphy for Kathu Pan 6, South Africa. J Paleo Arch 2, 235–257 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41982-019-00031-7

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