TY - JOUR
T1 - Cave stratigraphies and cave breccias: Implications for sediment accumulation and removal models and interpreting the record of human occupation
AU - O'Connor, Susan
AU - Barham, Anthony
AU - Aplin, Kenneth
AU - Maloney, Tim
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - Many of the key debates in archaeology hinge on the chronology and interpretation of data gathered
from cave and rockshelter stratigraphies, especially those in karstic limestone environments which are
selectively targeted by archaeologists because of their superior preservation characteristics. It has long
been recognized that such sites often contain a variety of cemented deposits including cave breccias and
that some breccias contain anthropogenic inclusions such as stone artefacts, shell and burnt animal
bones. Cementation enhances the survival through time of such brecciated deposits. This can result in
chrono-stratigraphic intervals surviving on cave walls and speleothems that are no longer represented in
the stratigraphy of cave floors. This has important implications for understanding apparent presence/
absence of human occupation and cultural continuity as seen in archaeo-stratigraphy in caves and
rockshelters, especially in relation to human migration in the humid tropics in SE Asia and the Pacific,
and over Pleistocene to Holocene timescales. Here we discuss localized breccia formation, the erosional
processes that leave remnant deposits adhering to walls and speleothems at heights well above current
cave floors, and the possible significance of local and regional processes, especially changing base levels,
in triggering gutting out phases impacting cave floor sediment architectures. Equally significant in terms
of chronological completeness, representativeness and bias is the contribution made by cultural materials
encased in older breccias as they erode and are (re-)incorporated into younger accumulating cultural
deposits. Case studies from cave sites in Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste are used to illustrate
these issues.
AB - Many of the key debates in archaeology hinge on the chronology and interpretation of data gathered
from cave and rockshelter stratigraphies, especially those in karstic limestone environments which are
selectively targeted by archaeologists because of their superior preservation characteristics. It has long
been recognized that such sites often contain a variety of cemented deposits including cave breccias and
that some breccias contain anthropogenic inclusions such as stone artefacts, shell and burnt animal
bones. Cementation enhances the survival through time of such brecciated deposits. This can result in
chrono-stratigraphic intervals surviving on cave walls and speleothems that are no longer represented in
the stratigraphy of cave floors. This has important implications for understanding apparent presence/
absence of human occupation and cultural continuity as seen in archaeo-stratigraphy in caves and
rockshelters, especially in relation to human migration in the humid tropics in SE Asia and the Pacific,
and over Pleistocene to Holocene timescales. Here we discuss localized breccia formation, the erosional
processes that leave remnant deposits adhering to walls and speleothems at heights well above current
cave floors, and the possible significance of local and regional processes, especially changing base levels,
in triggering gutting out phases impacting cave floor sediment architectures. Equally significant in terms
of chronological completeness, representativeness and bias is the contribution made by cultural materials
encased in older breccias as they erode and are (re-)incorporated into younger accumulating cultural
deposits. Case studies from cave sites in Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste are used to illustrate
these issues.
U2 - 10.1016/j.jas.2016.05.002
DO - 10.1016/j.jas.2016.05.002
M3 - Article
SN - 0305-4403
VL - 77
SP - 143
EP - 159
JO - Journal of Archaeological Science
JF - Journal of Archaeological Science
ER -