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Early Human Occupation at Devil's Lair, Southwestern Australia 50,000 Years Ago

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Chris S. M. Turney ,
Michael I. Bird ,
L. Keith Fifield ,
Richard G. Roberts ,
Mike Smith ,
Charles E. Dortch ,
Rainer Grün ,
Ewan Lawson ,
Linda K. Ayliffe  and
Gifford H. Miller
...Show all authors
Chris S. M. Turney
Affiliation:
Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
Michael I. Bird
Affiliation:
Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
L. Keith Fifield
Affiliation:
Department of Nuclear Physics, Research School of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
Richard G. Roberts
Affiliation:
School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3010, Australia
Mike Smith
Affiliation:
People and Environment Section, National Museum of Australia, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
Charles E. Dortch
Affiliation:
Anthropology Department, Western Australian Museum, Francis Street, Perth, Western Australia 6000, Australia
Rainer Grün
Affiliation:
Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
Ewan Lawson
Affiliation:
Physics Division, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, PMB1, Menai, New South Wales 2234, Australia
Linda K. Ayliffe
Affiliation:
Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France
Gifford H. Miller
Affiliation:
Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research and Department of Geological Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0450
Joe Dortch
Affiliation:
Centre for Archaeology, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, Western Australia 6907, Australia
Richard G. Cresswell
Affiliation:
Department of Nuclear Physics, Research School of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
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Abstract

New dating confirms that people occupied the Australian continent before the earliest time inferred from conventional radiocarbon analysis. Many of the new ages were obtained by accelerator mass spectrometry 14C dating after an acid–base–acid pretreatment with bulk combustion (ABA-BC) or after a newly developed acid–base–wet oxidation pretreatment with stepped combustion (ABOX-SC). The samples (charcoal) came from the earliest occupation levels of the Devil's Lair site in southwestern Western Australia. Initial occupation of this site was previously dated 35,000 14C yr B.P. Whereas the ABA-BC ages are indistinguishable from background beyond 42,000 14C yr B.P., the ABOX-SC ages are in stratigraphic order to ∼55,000 14C yr B.P. The ABOX-SC chronology suggests that people were in the area by 48,000 cal yr B.P. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), electron spin resonance (ESR) ages, U-series dating of flowstones, and 14C dating of emu eggshell carbonate are in agreement with the ABOX-SC 14C chronology. These results, based on four independent techniques, reinforce arguments for early colonization of the Australian continent.

Keywords

ABOX-SCradiocarbon datingluminescence datingelectron spin resonance datingU-series datingAustralian archaeology
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 55 , Issue 1 , January 2001 , pp. 3 - 13
Copyright
University of Washington

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