Laboratory Analysis of the Oldowan Artifact and Zooarcheological Samples from Kanjera South, Kenya

在美国国家科学基金会（National Science Foundation）的支持下，Thomas Plummer博士和一个由同事组成的国际团队将对从肯尼亚肯杰拉南部的Oldowan遗址中回收的材料进行实验室分析。该小组汇集了美国、英国、意大利和肯尼亚的古生物学、考古学、地质学、地球化学和材料科学专家，在古生态背景下研究古人类的活动。大约250万年前奥尔多瓦考古遗址的出现反映了人类进化中最重要的适应性转变之一。然而，我们对奥尔杜瓦古人类行为的理解仍然主要来自于一小部分遗址样本的解释，特别是来自坦桑尼亚奥杜瓦伊峡谷的样本。1996年至2001年的发掘在肯尼亚肯杰拉南部暴露的约2.0 Ma沉积物中发现了丰富的奥尔多瓦文物和化石。大约3000块化石和4500件文物被三维坐标打捞起来，另外数千块化石和文物被收集在吐槽袋和筛网中，提供了第一个主要的Oldowan组合，在I层/下II层Olduvai之外的文物和动物。对这些材料的分析提供了一个重要的机会，以扩大我们对古生态，技术和人类使用奥尔多瓦工具的生存行为的认识。该项目将进行实验室分析和相关的石器调查，以阐明坎杰拉的古生态背景、古人类的迁徙行为（包括石器原材料的运输）、动物获取策略（包括小型哺乳动物狩猎的可能性）、技术与原材料可用性和质量之间的关系，以及人工制品的功能。古生态信息将来自牙釉质的同位素分析和牛科动物的下颌生态形态（用于重建饮食），来自沿发育牙齿轴向长度采集的多个牙釉质样本的同位素分析（用于重建旱季强度和频率），来自基于分类的古群落分析和羚羊颅后生态形态（用于重建栖息地结构）。这些数据将增加该项目已经完成的古碳酸盐岩的同位素分析。动物考古分析将有助于重建遗址形成过程，阐明古人类接触尸体的时间以及与食肉动物的现场竞争程度。最后的岩屑调查将使我们能够完成对岩屑原料的主要和次要来源的普查。对参考样品和人工制品地球化学以及岩屑薄片的分析应该使我们能够获得大量人工制品原材料。对岩屑原材料的材料科学分析将使我们能够量化原材料断裂的可预测性和边缘耐久性，并结合采购数据阐明技术属性与原材料可用性和质量之间的关系。边饰分析将提供oldowa工件功能的最古老的直接文档。总的来说，这个项目将大大扩展我们对奥尔多瓦古人类行为变异的认识，以及对第一种石器技术的适应意义的认识。在方法上，它代表了最广泛的分析和理论方法，但适用于考古发生的这个古代。除了扩大我们对第一个岩石技术的了解之外，该项目还将促进两名美国博士生的职业发展，并加强美国、英国、意大利和三个肯尼亚组织（肯尼亚国家博物馆、核科学研究所和工业部）研究人员之间的科学联系。

With National Science Foundation support, Dr. Thomas Plummer and an international team of colleagues will conduct laboratory analyses on materials recovered from the Oldowan site of Kanjera South, Kenya. The team brings together American, English, Italian and Kenyan specialists in paleontology, archeology, geology, geochemistry and material science to examine hominin activities within their paleoecological context. The appearance of Oldowan archeological sites at c. 2.5 million years ago reflects one of the most important adaptive shifts in human evolution. However, our understanding of Oldowan hominin behavior continues to be dominated by interpretations from a small sample of sites, particularly those from Bed I Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. Excavations in 1996-2001 recovered rich concentrations of Oldowan artifacts and fossils in c. 2.0 Ma deposits in the Southern Exposures at Kanjera, Kenya. Approximately 3000 fossils and 4500 artifacts were lifted with three dimensional coordinates and thousands of additional fossils and artifacts were collected in spit bags and sieving, providing the first major Oldowan assemblage with both artifacts and fauna outside of Bed I/lower Bed II Olduvai. The analysis of these materials provides a significant opportunity to expand our knowledge of the paleoecology, technology and subsistence behavior of hominins using Oldowan tools.This project will conduct laboratory analyses and a related lithic survey to elucidate the paleoecological context at Kanjera, hominin ranging behavior including the transport of lithic raw materials, faunal acquisition strategies, including the strong possibility of small mammal hunting, the relationship between technology and raw material availability and quality, and artifact function. Paleoecological information will be derived from isotopic analysis of tooth enamel and bovid mandibular ecomorphology (to reconstruct diet), from isotopic analysis of multiple enamel samples taken along the axial lengths of developing teeth (to reconstruct dry season intensity and frequency), from taxon-based paleocommunity analyses and from antelope postcranial ecomorphology (to reconstruct habitat structure). This data will augment the isotopic analysis of palesol carbonates already completed by the project. Zooarcheological analysis will assist in reconstructing site formation processes and elucidate the timing of hominin access to carcasses and the degree of on-site competition with carnivores. A final lithic survey will allow us to complete our census of primary and secondary sources of lithic raw material. Analysis of reference sample and artifact geochemistry as well as lithic thin sections should allow us to source a substantial proportion of the artifact raw materials. Material science analysis of lithic raw materials will allow us to quantify aspects of raw material fracture predictability and edge durability and in combination with sourcing data illuminate the relationship between technological attributes and raw material availability and quality. Edgewear analysis will provide the oldest direct documentation of Oldowan artifact function.In totality, this project will substantially expand our knowledge of Oldowan hominin behavioral variation and of the adaptive significance of the first lithic technology. Methodologically, it represents the broadest array of analytical and theoretical approaches yet applied to an archeological occurrence of this antiquity.In addition to broadening our knowledge of the first lithic technology, this project will advance the careers of two American doctoral students and strengthen scientific ties between researchers in the U.S., England, Italy and three Kenyan organizations (National Museums of Kenya, Institute of Nuclear Science and the Ministry of Works).