John W Olsen
Biographic Data
| ID | 73748 |
|---|---|
| NAME | John W Olsen |
| GIVEN NAMES | John W |
| FAMILY NAME | Olsen |
| SIGNATURE | OLSEN J W |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Arizona |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5295-7451 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 85 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 686 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 83 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 2 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1970 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 14 |
Early Holocene human occupation of the Western Tibetan plateau
Results of the 2025 Excavations at Tsagaan-Agui Cave, Gobi Altai
This paper presents the results of recent investigations conducted at Tsagaan Agui Cave, located in the Gobi Altai of southern Central Mongolia, during 2021–2025. Pit 2 in the Main Chamber revealed a stratigraphic sequence spanning from the Middle to the Late Pleistocene and identified seven cultural layers. In 2025, Pit 2 was expanded, and deposits containing cultural layers 1–4 were examined in the newly opened units. Layer 1 contained several …
Lithic technology at Banjingzi Locality 1
Raptorial Birds as Taphonomic Agents for Small Mammal Remains in Pleistocene Deposits at Tsagaan Agui Cave, Mongolia
Raptorial Birds as Taphonomic Agents for Small Mammal Remains in Pleistocene Deposits at Tsagaan Agui Cave, Mongolia
Статья посвящена реконструкции влияния хищных птиц на тафоценоз мелких млекопитающих в пещере Цагаан-Агуй и определению состава последних для климатической и палеоландшафтной характеристики окрестностей пещеры в период накопления слоев 4 и 5.1-5.3 Большого грота. Изучены скопления костей мелких млекопитающих, обнаруженные в этих слоях в 2022-2023 гг. (раскоп 2) и связанные, вероятно, с периодическим функционированием гнезд крупных пернатых хищник…
Excavations in the Main Chamber of Tsagaan Agui Cave in 2024
Tsagaan Agui Cave is a unique archaeological site in North and Central Asia, since it contains Upper and Middle Pleistocene deposits with well-preserved paleontological material and cultural remains down to its oldest layers. Since 2021, we have studied the northern part of the main chamber of Tsagaan Agui. Excavation pit 2 is located under an opening in the cave ceiling, open to the sky, which makes it possible to trace the boundary between rela…
Environmental reconstruction and dating of Shixiakou Locality 1 on China's West Loess Plateau
New data on Neanderthal behavior in the Altai region, Russia
What defines the “Minusinsk Style” in the earliest rock art of the Minusinsk Basin, southern Siberia
The Middle Paleolithic of Tsagaan Agui Cave in the Gobi Altai region of Mongolia and its Siberian and Central Asian links
Starch remains from human teeth reveal the Bronze and Early Iron Ages vegetal diet of Xinjiang, Northwest China
China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has long been a vital link between Europe and Eastern Asia. Xinjiang's geographical location and natural environment have led to unique dietary habits and traditions among both the region's modern inhabitants and their ancient forebears. Here, we report on the analysis of human dental residue samples unearthed from the Jiayi Cemetery, a 10th to 2nd century BCE mortuary complex located in the Turpan Basin,…
The east of the Neanderthal universe
Late European Neanderthals, associated with the Micoquian techno-complex, spread over vast area from Western Europe to the Altai. There were no sites found in the territories to the east of the Volga region. The key site of the Eastern Micoquian, Sukhaya Mechetka, which was discovered in 1951 in the Volgograd region, was for a long time the eastern outpost of Neanderthals in Eurasia. In the last five years, the results of paleogenetic analysis ha…
Chronology of Archaeological Complexes with Geometric Microliths in Northern Mongolia
Upper Palaeolithic microlithic complexes in Northeast Asia are usually included in the spectrum of non-geometric industries. Mongolia, which is considered a possible crossroads of Middle and Upper Paleolithic migration routes due to its environmental and geographic conditions, is the only exception in this vast region. The Tolbor cluster of sites in the Middle Selenga Basin contains lithic complexes with trapezes and segments. We define the chron…
Evidence of wildfire versus anthropogenic combustion features
How Neanderthals gripped retouchers
Shelter in an extreme environment
Beginning in the Middle Palaeolithic, human populations penetrated areas of Central Asia that are today characterised by extremely arid conditions. Mongolia's Gobi Desert comprises one such region. Tsagaan Agui Cave presents an example of the later Pleistocene occupation of this area, containing stratified evidence of diachronic, intense human and animal occupation
Evidence from the Dayao Paleolithic site, Inner Mongolia for human migration into arid northwest China during mid-Pleistocene interglacials
The Dayao Paleolithic site, located in Inner Mongolia on the eastern margin of China's vast northwestern drylands, was a lithic quarry-workshop utilized by Pleistocene human migrants through the region. Determining the age of this activity has previously yielded controversial results. Our magnetostratigraphic and OSL dating results suggest the two artifact-bearing paleosols are correlated with MIS 5 and 7, respectively. Correlating paleoclimatic …
Late Pleistocene Paleoenvironments and Episodic Human Occupations in the Orkhon Valley of Central Mongolia
В статье рассматриваются результаты нового цикла исследований палеолитических памятников в долине р. Орхон (Центральная Монголия) — Мойлтын ам, Орхон-1, Орхон-7. Основное внимание уделяется памятнику Мойлтын ам, материалы которого представляют культурно-стратиграфическую последовательность от финального среднего до позднего верхнего палеолита. Полученные результаты анализов редкоземельных элементов, Sr-изотопов и фаунистических остатков соотносят…
Holocene Archaeological Material from Tsagaan Agui Cave Recovered During the 2021 Excavation Campaign
Tsagaan Agui Cave, situated in Tsagaan Tsakhir limestone massif in the Gobi Altai Mountains of southern Mongolia, is the one of the rare stratified Holocene archaeological sites known in the Gobi Desert. During 1995-2000 excavation campaigns, cultural material spanning the late Bronze Age through the ethnographic present was recovered. In 2021, an excavation pit (2021/1) was dug in the gallery that joints the cave’s Main and Small Chambers, and a…
Preliminary Results of the 2021 Excavation Campaign at Tsagaan Agui Cave in the Gobi Altai Region, Mongolia
Middle and Upper Paleolithic human migrations and dispersals throughout Central Asia are usually associated with middle altitudes and mild steppe and forest-steppe environments with herds of large game mammals. However, since at least the Middle Paleolithic, human populations penetrated areas of Central Asia characterized by extreme arid climatic and environmental conditions in modern times. Investigation of archaeological sites in such regions d…
Ostrich Eggshell Morphology Based on Pleistocene and Holocene Samples from Mongolia
Ostrich eggshell bead-making appears relatively early in regions inhabited by ostriches. This type of personal ornamentation emerged in Central Asia together with human populations associated with the laminar Initial Upper Paleolithic culture about 45,000 uncal BP or slightly earlier. Eggshell beads and pendants occur in Central Asia until the Middle Holocene, while the technology of bead-making underwent changes throughout this period. Although …
Magnetostratigraphic and uranium-series dating of fossiliferous cave sediments in Jinyuan Cave, Liaoning Province, northeast China
Late Pleistocene Paleoenvironments and Episodic Human Occupations in the Orkhon Valley of Central Mongolia
Here, we present initial results of a new course of research being carried out at the Moiltyn-am, Orkhon-1, and Orkhon-7 Paleolithic sites in the Orkhon River Valley, central Mongolia. Our research focuses on the Moiltyn-am site, which preserves a cultural and chronological sequence from the Final Middle to the Late Upper Paleolithic. Results from analyses of rare earth elements, Strontium (Sr) isotopes, and faunal assemblages are correlated with…
Archaeological and experimental studies of splintered pieces in the Central Asian Upper Paleolithic
Comparison Study of Cultural Layers Preservation at the Moiltyn Am Site (Central Mongolia)
Archaeological sites with unclear conditions of sediment accumulation and stratigraphic disturbances are always complicated to research. Usually other sites in the region with better preservation of cultural layers helps to understand and divide them into cultural chronological stages. However lack of such sites results in the need to find other approaches and research methods to study stratigraphic positions of cultural horizons. Purpose. This a…
Raw Material Quality and Prepared Core Technologies in Northeast Asia
The Late Upper Paleolithic occupation of the northern Tibetan Plateau margin
Zhoukoudian
On-site observations on the faunal collections remaining in Beijing from the prewar excavations of Zhoukoudian are reported. Assessments are made regarding the degree to which these collections represent both the faunal remains removed from the site. Comparative studies of the observed materials are then presented with the aim of assessing the relative roles of hominids and other denning animals. It is concluded that, given our current knowledge …
Palaeoanthropology and palaeolithic archaeology in the People's Republic of China
Epipaleolithic/early Neolithic settlements at Qinghai Lake, western China
The technology of early Upper Paleolithic lithic reduction in Northern Mongolia
Chronology and Periodization of Upper Paleolithic Sites in Mongolia
Based on archaeological materials recovered from stratified sites in the Khangai Mountains and the Gobi Altai regions and new radiocarbon dates for the Tolbor-4 and 15 localities, a tripartite chronological subdivision of the Mongolian Upper Paleolithic is suggested. The first period is the Early Upper Paleolithic (40–26 ka BP). Sites dating to this period have been discovered both in the Khangai and the Gobi Altai regions. The second period bega…
Lithic assemblages from the Chang Tang Region, Northern Tibet
Archaeological evidence from the Chang Tang Reserve suggests that humans may have first colonized the Tibetan Plateau during the late Pleistocene. Blade, bladelet and microblade technologies are found as surface assemblages in a variety of contexts above 4500 m elevation. The lack of modern analogues for foraging populations in high-elevation environments brings about a reconsideration of the diversity and organization of Pleistocene hunter-gathe…
The Upper Paleolithic of Mongolia
Disparate Stone Age Technological Evolution in North China
The transition from Middle to Upper Paleolithic and the global diffusion of modern human populations remain hotly debated topics. The timing and pace of the transition in China are especially uncertain. This paper examines spatial and temporal variation among Paleolithic assemblages in North China dated to Marine Isotope Stage 3. There are two main systems of blank production in evidence: one is Levallois-like whereas the other involves simple un…
Early Upper Paleolithic Stone Tool Technologies of Northern Mongolia
Based on regularly retouched tools recovered from the Early Upper Paleolithic Tolbor-4 and Tolbor-15 sites in the Khangai Mountains of northern Mongolia, we reconstruct the development of cores from large bidirectional forms for the production of elongated blades to flat unidirectional and orthogonal nuclei. Blanks also became progressively smaller, while the toolkit remained virtually unchanged. Two detectable principal technological trends incl…
The Paleolithic of Dzungaria (Xinjiang, Northwest China) Based on Materials from the Luotuoshi Site
The paper reports the results of an analysis of surface collections of artifacts made at the Luotuoshi site in Dzungaria, Xinjiang, northwest China. The site was discovered in 2004 by a joint Chinese-Russian-American archaeological expedition. A techno-typological analysis of the artifacts was carried out noting aeolian abrasion of the artifacts' surfaces. This technocomplex is quite homogenous and is characterized by a combination of Levallois-l…
Microblade remains from the Xishahe site, North China and their implications for the origin of microblade technology in Northeast Asia
Paleoanthropological and archaeological research in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Late Occupation of the High‐Elevation Northern Tibetan Plateau Based on Cosmogenic, Luminescence, and Radiocarbon Ages
10 Be‐ 26 Al cosmogenic surface exposure, optically stimulated luminescence, and radiocarbon dates from the site of Xidatan 2 (∼4300 m above sea level [asl] in the Kunlun Pass, northern Tibetan Plateau) suggest the site was intermittently and briefly occupied approximately 9200–6400 yr B.P. This age is substantially younger than expected given the late Upper Paleolithic character of the lithic assemblage, which is dominated by microlithic and uni…
New Insights Into the Archaeological Record at Chikhen Agui Rockshelter (Mongolia)
The paper continues a series of publications dedicated to the analysis of the archaeological fi ndings from Chikhen Agui Rockshelter. Chikhen Agui is among the few stratifi ed archaeological sites that have been located in Mongolia. In the previous papers, Chikhen Agui has been defi ned as a seasonal camp of the Early Holocene hunters. In the present publication, the authors employ the multifunctional approach to the analysis of the whole complex…
New evidence for Paleolithic human behavior in Mongolia
Long distance transport and use of mica in the Initial Upper Paleolithic of Central Asia
The Early Upper Paleolithic of the Gobi Altai Region in Mongolia (Based on Materials From the Chikhen-2 Site)
Here, we present technological, typological and morphological analyses of the Pleistocene lithic assemblages excavated from Horizons 3–2.5 of the multicomponent Chikhen-2 site located on the southern piedmont of the Gobi Altai Range, southern Mongolia. Descriptions of geomorphology, stratigraphy, and archaeological finds are given, along with an analysis of reduction and secondary trimming techniques and retouch typology. Single-platform mono-fro…
The Macaws of Grasshopper Ruin
Macaws (Ara sp.) are known from prehistoric sites throughout much of the Southwest. These birds have particular importance as indicators of trade routes between the Southwestern pueblos and the cultural centers to the south of the present Arizona border. The natural range of the macaws is some 200 miles south of the Arizona-Mexico border. An unusual occurrence of a macaw-child burial is reported as are 15 macaw skeletons that have been collected …
Radiocarbon Dating of Interdune Paleo‐Wetland Deposits to Constrain the Age of Mid‐to‐Late Holocene Microlithic Artifacts from the Zhongba site, Southwestern Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau
Microlithic artifacts, some found in situ , are abundant in the Z hongba archaeological site in southwestern T ibet. The site environment consists of extant wetlands and paleo‐wetland deposits found in depressions between sand dunes derived from the Yarlung Tsangpo floodplain. Constraining 14 C dates from wetland vegetation and shell from one site fall between ca . 6600–2600 cal. yr B.P., while a second site is dated 3400–1200 cal. yr B.P. A sign…
The practice of archaeology in China today
In the new opening-up of China to the outside world that has taken place in the last decade, archaeology and history has a major role. A walk on the Great Wall seems obligatory for visiting monarchs and presidents, while the jade princesses have themselves come to Europe. The excavation of the 'terracotta army' exemplifies the scale of active archaeological research, and its exposure to public view. But why is there such concern for the past, and…
How Neanderthals gripped retouchers
Late Pleistocene Paleoenvironments and Episodic Human Occupations in the Orkhon Valley of Central Mongolia
Here, we present initial results of a new course of research being carried out at the Moiltyn-am, Orkhon-1, and Orkhon-7 Paleolithic sites in the Orkhon River Valley, central Mongolia. Our research focuses on the Moiltyn-am site, which preserves a cultural and chronological sequence from the Final Middle to the Late Upper Paleolithic. Results from analyses of rare earth elements, Strontium (Sr) isotopes, and faunal assemblages are correlated with…
Middle Palaeolithic human dispersal in Central Asia
A Preliminary Report on the Fish and Herpetofauna of Grasshopper Ruin
Excavations at Grasshopper Ruin, Arizona, have yielded remains of fish and amphibians which indicate the presence of a permanent water supply near the pueblo during its occupation
The Macaws of Grasshopper Ruin
Macaws (Ara sp.) are known from prehistoric sites throughout much of the Southwest. These birds have particular importance as indicators of trade routes between the Southwestern pueblos and the cultural centers to the south of the present Arizona border. The natural range of the macaws is some 200 miles south of the Arizona-Mexico border. An unusual occurrence of a macaw-child burial is reported as are 15 macaw skeletons that have been collected …
A Study of Chinese Ceramics Excavated in Tucson
Archaeological investigations conducted in conjunction with the Tucson Urban Renewal Project by the Arizona State Museum have yielded a large quantity of Chinese ceramics. These utilitarian wares are analyzed according to their function, decoration, and mode of manufacture in an effort to provide a catalogue of basic information to facilitate future studies of this sort
The Pleistocene Prehistory of China
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A Comment on Nomenclature in Faunal Studies
The study of faunal remains from archaeological sites has been described using a variety of terms including: zooarchaeology, archaeozoology, osteoarchaeology, and ethnozoology. With such a broad spectrum of terms in current usage, we feel that the contradictions and errors inherent in some of this nomenclature need to be corrected. We prefer the term zooarchaeology, as a contraction of the word zoologico-archaeology proposed by Lubbock in 1865, t…
Archaeology
A handaxe of Libyan Desert glass
The handaxe of Libyan Desert glass (PL. XIIIb & FIG. I) was found on 23 June 1979, in the Sand Sea of S.W. Egypt, at latitude 25°o8' N, longitude 25° 35·5' E, near the southern boundary of the known distribution area of the glass. Lying just north of the Gilf Kebir, this part of the Sand Sea is characterized by an extensive field of linear dunes, trending almost exactly N-S, which are up to Ioom high, tens of km long, and separated by interdune c…
An analysis of East Asian coins excavated in Tucson, Arizona
Palaeoanthropology and palaeolithic archaeology in the People's Republic of China
The Pleistocene Prehistory of China
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Zhoukoudian
On-site observations on the faunal collections remaining in Beijing from the prewar excavations of Zhoukoudian are reported. Assessments are made regarding the degree to which these collections represent both the faunal remains removed from the site. Comparative studies of the observed materials are then presented with the aim of assessing the relative roles of hominids and other denning animals. It is concluded that, given our current knowledge …
Paleoanthropological and archaeological research in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Palaeoanthropology and Palaeolithic Archaeology in the People's Republic of China
Recent Developments in the Upper Pleistocene Prehistory of China
Archeology
The Badain Jaran Desert
Approximately half the Badain Jaran Desert in the north-western Alashan Plain of northern China is a sand sea. The remainder is gravel or bedrock. The north-western border of the desert is a playa. The desert has been imaged by both Landsat and the Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR-A). Landsat analysis indicates there are two dune patterns in the sand sea, north-east oriented crescentic dunes along the northern and western borders, and complex star dune…
The practice of archaeology in China today
In the new opening-up of China to the outside world that has taken place in the last decade, archaeology and history has a major role. A walk on the Great Wall seems obligatory for visiting monarchs and presidents, while the jade princesses have themselves come to Europe. The excavation of the 'terracotta army' exemplifies the scale of active archaeological research, and its exposure to public view. But why is there such concern for the past, and…
A review of evidence for postulated Middle Pleistocene occupations in Viet Nam
Social/Cultural Anthropology
[Human Evolution in Southern and Eastern Asia] Palaeoanthropological and Archaeological Discoveries From Lang Trang Caves
Zhoukoudian International Paleoanthropological Research Center established in Beijing
Raw Material Quality and Prepared Core Technologies in Northeast Asia
China's Earliest Inhabitants
Recent reevaluations of the absolute chronology of human ancestry in East Asia, particularly China and Indonesia, yield the not unexpected conclusion that eastern Eurasian Homo erectus may be synchronic with the earliest members of that hypodigm known from Africa. In the past decade, both archaeological and paleontological evidence has come to light in China suggesting the presence of human ancestors prior to the Matuyama [R] chron-Brunhes [N] ch…
Lithic assemblages from the Chang Tang Region, Northern Tibet
Archaeological evidence from the Chang Tang Reserve suggests that humans may have first colonized the Tibetan Plateau during the late Pleistocene. Blade, bladelet and microblade technologies are found as surface assemblages in a variety of contexts above 4500 m elevation. The lack of modern analogues for foraging populations in high-elevation environments brings about a reconsideration of the diversity and organization of Pleistocene hunter-gathe…
A Tribute to Jia Lanpo (1908-2001)
A Tribute to Jia Lanpo (1908–2001) John W. Olsen Born during the twilight years of China's last imperial dynasty, Jia Lanpo was known nearly universally to his Chinese-speaking colleagues and students as Jia Lao, a referent of supreme respect that may be translated roughly as Elder Jia. In the traditional Chinese worldview—still very much central to the ways in which ethnic Chinese reckon social relationships, irrespective of their national origi…
Archaeology (73 works) · Geography (72 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (59 works) · Geology (45 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (44 works) · Pleistocene (36 works) · Paleontology (35 works) · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research (28 works) · China (27 works) · History (26 works)