Exploring changing occupation dynamics at the lakeside cave site Matja Kuru 2, Timor-Leste

Datos Bibliográficos

ID9344137
AutoresSofia C Samper Carro (0000-0002-0743-4026, Australian National University, autor de correspondencia), Sue O''Connor (0000-0001-9381-078X, Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research), Shimona Kealy (0000-0002-0646-1313, Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research), Rebecca K Jones (0000-0001-8008-2349, Australian Museum), Carolyn A Raymond (0000-0003-2887-9267, Australian National University), Clara Boulanger (0000-0002-5358-6477, National Museum of Ethnology), Hawkin (0000-0001-8838-2856, Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research), T Lu (0000-0003-1402-839X, The University of Queensland), M C Langley (0000-0002-0299-5561, Griffith University), C Clarkson (0000-0002-8938-8974, The University of Queensland)
Año2023
Volumen13
Páginas100127-100127
Fecha de publicación2023-10-10
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaQuaternary Science Advances (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 2666-0334 • E-ISSN: 2666-0334
EditorialElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.qsa.2023.100127
OpenAlexW4387491351
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas3
Referencias citadas45

The cave site known as Matja Kuru 2 (MK2) in Timor-Leste was first occupied ∼40 kya. Of the caves investigated thus far in Timor-Leste MK2 is unique in being located proximal to a large freshwater lake, Ira Lalaro, providing the opportunity to examine changing occupation dynamics in a lakeside environment from the Late Pleistocene through to the late Holocene. We present the analysis of the Matja Kuru 2 assemblage including the stone, ochre, shell and bone artefacts, and the vertebrate and invertebrate remains. We discuss the challenges posed by cave deposits in tropical Island South East Asia which often preserve little in the way of identifiable stratigraphy. Such caves also present challenges in terms of disentangling what components of the faunal assemblage were deposited as meal refuse by humans, as opposed to by other predators or as a result of natural deaths. We suggest a method for assisting with this taphonomic conundrum

Archaeology · Assemblage (archaeology · Biology · Cave · Ethnology · Faunal assemblage · Geography · Invertebrate · Kuru · Pleistocene · Predation · Stone tool · Taphonomy · Timor leste · History · Marine animal studies overview · Pacific and Southeast Asian Studies · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology · Ecology · Geology · Paleontology