Middle Pleistocene occupations at Chhajoli, Rajasthan, India

Datos Bibliográficos

ID19228732
AutoresJ Blinkhorn (0000-0002-9399-5515, University of Liverpool, autor de correspondencia), H Achyuthan (Anna University, Chennai), P Ajithprasad (Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar), D Anil (Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar), P Kumar (0000-0003-3653-8163), P Arun Kumar (Zoological Survey of India), S J Armitage (Royal Holloway University of London)
Año2026
Volumen4
Número2
Páginas100104-100104
Fecha de publicación2026-04-18
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaQuaternary Environments and Humans (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 2950-2365 • E-ISSN: 2950-2365
EditorialElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.qeh.2026.100104
OpenAlexW7154848799
IdiomaEN
Referencias citadas29

Western India marks a critical biogeographic threshold, making it an important region to explore patterns of hominin occupation and adaptation in the Pleistocene. Focus on exploring evidence for hominin expansions across this threshold have drawn interest to the Late Pleistocene, whereas despite a broad Lower Palaeolithic record, earlier occupations are sparse, notably the Late Acheulean occupation at Singi Talav, as well as sparse presence at 16 R Dune. Here, we report evidence for Middle Pleistocene occupations at Chhajoli, Nagaur District, Rajasthan. We constrain the age of deposition at this site between 269 and 78 thousand years ago using luminescence dating of feldspars and characterise the nature of stone tool technologies present based on lithics collected from stratified deposits, highlighting the presence of bifacial hierarchical cores, blade technology and bifaces. We place these findings in the context of current debate surrounding the appearance of Levallois technologies in the South Asian record, highlighting the importance of frequently encountered but rarely described ‘prepared’ cores

Acheulean · Context (archaeology) · Lithic technology · Middle Paleolithic · Middle Stone Age · Pleistocene · Stone tool · Evolution and Paleontology Studies · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology · Primate Behavior and Ecology