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The oldest and longest enduring microlithic sequence in India: 35 000 years of modern human occupation and change at the Jwalapuram Locality 9 rockshelter

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Chris Clarkson*
Affiliation:
School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072, Australia
Michael Petraglia
Affiliation:
Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, UK
Ravi Korisettar
Affiliation:
Department of History and Archaeology, Karnatak University, Dharwad 580 003, India
Michael Haslam
Affiliation:
Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, UK
Nicole Boivin
Affiliation:
School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 2PG, UK
Alison Crowther
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, University of Sheffield, Northgate House, Sheffield, S1 4ET, UK
Peter Ditchfıeld
Affiliation:
School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 2PG, UK
Dorian Fuller
Affiliation:
Institute of Archaeology, University College London, London, WC1H 0PY, UK
Preston Miracle
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, The University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3DZ, UK
Clair Harris
Affiliation:
School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072, Australia
Kate Connell
Affiliation:
School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072, Australia
Hannah James
Affiliation:
Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, UK
Jinu Koshy
Affiliation:
Department of History and Archaeology, Karnatak University, Dharwad 580 003, India

Abstract

The Jwalapuram Locality 9 rockshelter in southern India dates back to 35 000 years ago and it is emerging as one of the key sites for documenting human activity and behaviour in South Asia. The excavated assemblage includes a proliferation of lithic artefacts, beads, worked bone and fragments of a human cranium. The industry is microlithic in character, establishing Jwalapuram 9 as one of the oldest and most important sites of its kind in South Asia.

Type
Research
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd 2009

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