Dai Kunikita

Advanced maritime adaptation in the western Pacific coastal region extends back to 35,000-30,000 years before present.

Significance Moving into oceanic islands after c. 50,000 years ago was a remarkable step forward in the history of worldwide expansion of modern humans. However, the developmental process of Pleistocene maritime technology remains unclear. So far, the only secure sources of information for such discussions were the Indonesian Archipelago and northern New Guinea as steppingstones from the Asian continent to Australia. This article reports a successful maritime adaptation that extended from ∼35,000 to 13,000 years ago on a small island environment in the southern Japanese Archipelago. The new evidence demonstrates a geographically wider distribution of early maritime technology that extended north to the midlatitude areas along the western Pacific coast. Maritime adaptation was one of the essential factors that enabled modern humans to disperse all over the world. However, geographic distribution of early maritime technology during the Late Pleistocene remains unclear. At this time, the Indonesian Archipelago and eastern New Guinea stand as the sole, well-recognized area for secure Pleistocene evidence of repeated ocean crossings and advanced fishing technology. The incomplete archeological records also make it difficult to know whether modern humans could sustain their life on a resource-poor, small oceanic island for extended periods with Paleolithic technology. We here report evidence from a limestone cave site on Okinawa Island, Japan, of successive occupation that extends back to 35,000−30,000 y ago. Well-stratified strata at the Sakitari Cave site yielded a rich assemblage of seashell artifacts, including formally shaped tools, beads, and the world’s oldest fishhooks. These are accompanied by seasonally exploited food residue. The persistent occupation on this relatively small, geographically isolated island, as well as the appearance of Paleolithic sites on nearby islands by 30,000 y ago, suggest wider distribution of successful maritime adaptations than previously recognized, spanning the lower to midlatitude areas in the western Pacific coastal region.

Dating Charred Remains on Pottery and Analyzing Food Habits in the Early Neolithic Period in Northeast Asia

This study reconstructs food habits through carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis, and C/N analysis of charred residues inside pottery from Amur River sites in Russia (Goncharka 1 site, Novotroitskoe 10 site, Kondon 1 site) and in Hokkaido, Japan (Taisho 3 site, Yachiyo A site). We obtained dates from 12,330 to 7920 BP for these sites. There are major differences in the carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios between the Taisho 3 site (13C: –21.7 to –24.1‰; 15N: 11.9–14.7‰) and the other sites (13C: –22.0 to –27.1‰; 15N: 7.1–13.1‰), suggesting that the people of the Taisho 3 site made use of anadromous fish such as salmonids and some species of trout, as well as marine resources. The dates from the other sites except Taisho 3 were assumed to be from a mixture of marine foods, C3 plants and terrestrial animals, and freshwater fish. The food boiled in the pots also indicated a high dependence on marine resources during the initial stages of the emergence of pottery. INTRODUCTION It is known that the region of Northeast Asia was the site of the world’s earliest emergence of pottery (~15,000 cal BP, as at the Odai Yamamoto 1 site in Japan; Nakamura et al. 2001). The precipitating factors for the emergence of pottery are believed to be related to ecological changes accompanied by climatic changes from the end of the Pleistocene to the early Holocene. Many theories have been proposed regarding the functions and uses of pottery in the early Neolithic in Northeast Asia on the basis of pottery shapes (capacity and type) and stone artifact composition, changes in the natural environment, the beginning of river fishing, and the use of nuts. Recent results show that pottery emerged in 3 regions of East Asia (south China, the Japanese Islands, and the Russian Far East), and it seems that the combination of environmental changes and the necessity of processing terrestrial plants and freshwater fish and mollusks resulted in the production of pottery-making in East Asia (Kuzmin 2010). The emergence of pottery was a groundbreaking event in prehistoric East Asia. Therefore, examining the process will be extremely valuable for understanding the subsequent years of the Neolithic period. Some scholars have conducted various stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses of human bone collagen since the 2000s for reconstruction of food habits in the Neolithic period in Northeast Asia (Kuzmin et al. 2002). This technique can also apply to charcoal samples as a measurement indicator for determining the existence of the marine reservoir effect in the 14C dating of charred residues found on pottery. Some interesting data were reported at the Goly Mys 1 site in Russia with the aim of reconstructing food habits (Sakamoto 2007). The Goly Mys 1 site (520908N, 1400065E) is located on the south coast of Lake Udyl’, one of the lakes spreading over the lowlands on the north side of the Sikhote Alin Mountains, in the northeast lower Amur River basin. The charred remains on pottery from the Goly Mys 1 site are characterized by 13C of –28 to –25‰ and 15N >10‰. Judging from the 13C value, they are unlikely to have been affected by the marine reservoir effect; however, the proposed age gives a date that is several hundred years older. Sakamoto (2007) points 1Faculty of Letters, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. 2Corresponding author. Email: dkunikita@yahoo.co.jp. 3Museum of Archaeology, Khabarovsk Regional Museum after NI Grodekov, 86 Turgeneva st., Khabarovsk 680000, Russia. 4University Museum, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. 5Obihiro Centennial City Museum, 2 Midorigaoka, Obihiro-shi Hokkaido 080-0846, Japan. 6School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 2-11-16 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku Tokyo 113-0032, Japan.

Dating and Stable Isotope Analysis of Charred Residues on the Incipient Jomon Pottery (Japan)

This study reports radiocarbon dates of more than 30 samples of charred residues on pottery sherds of the Incipient Jomon period. The ages of Linear-relief (Ryukisenmon) pottery were 15,300–13,700 cal BP, with great differences among the samples. The pitted decoration (Enkomon), Nail-impressed (Tsumegatamon), and pressing and dragging (Oshibikimon) types date to 13,800–12,400 cal BP. For pottery of the same type, differences among sites were large. At the Unokiminami site, the impressed cord mark (Oatsu Jomon) is the main pottery type, including Nail-impressed. The latter shows a slightly older age. Stable isotope and elemental analyses were used to ascertain the origin of charred residues on the pottery. In the data set of Jomon pottery of the oldest type, residues consisting only of cooked nuts were found. However, Jomon people, even from early times, are thought to have cooked mixed plant and animal ingredients, including marine products. INTRODUCTION Pottery-making started in the terminal Late Pleistocene in Japan (Nakamura et al. 2001), China (Boaretto et al. 2009), and the Russian Far East (Kuzmin 2006). Recently, the emergence of pottery in China was dated possibly back to 20,000 yr ago based on samples from Xianrendong Cave, Jiangxi, China (Wu et al. 2012). The Incipient Jomon period in Japan can be divided into 4 phases according to changes in the pottery type (Taniguchi 2011): Phase 1 (before Linear-relief) of 16,540–15,250 cal BP; Phase 2 (Linearrelief or decorated with slender clay ridges [Ryukisenmon]): 15,190–13,500 cal BP; Phase 3a (pitted decoration [Enkomon], Nail-impressed or decorated with crescent-impressed patterns [Tsumegatamon], and impressed cord mark [Oatsu Jomon]): 14,840–12,090 cal BP; and Phase 3b (rolled cord impression [Kaitenjomon] and others): 11,970–11,240 cal BP. The analyzed samples are thought to belong to 2nd and 3rd groups above based on pottery type. Phase 2 corresponds to the Bølling oscillation, the first interstadial GI-1e after the Last Glacial Maximum (Lowe et al. 2008). The varve chronology of Lake Suigetsu indicates changes in the sedimentation rate and sedimentary processes in the period around 12.6 kyr BP (Bronk Ramsey et al. 2012). It is interesting that dates of the Linear-relief type are in the same range. Phase 3a corresponds to the Allerød oscillation, while Phase 3b is in the range of the Younger Dryas stadial. Clarifying the purposes of use of earthenware vessels in the early days of pottery-making presents an important problem. Determining the kinds of food components eaten by ancient people, methods of getting food, and the manner of cooking are crucially important subjects in the fields of archaeology and anthropology. Stable isotopic analysis is an extremely powerful tool in the elucidation of paleodiet. The approach uses charred materials on the pottery surface. The materials are presumed to be residues of cooked food and the remaining information exists to reveal raw materials cooked by ancient populations for meals (Yoshida 2006). They are the results of one or a few cooking expe1The University Museum, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. 2Corresponding author. Email: gara@um.u-tokyo.ac.jp. 3Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, Tokoro Research Lab., The University of Tokyo, 384 Sakaeura, Tokoro-cho, Kitami-shi, Hokkaido 093-0216, Japan. 4Niigata Prefectual Museum of History, Sekihara 1, Nagaoka, Niigata 940-2035, Japan. 5School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 2-11-16 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan.

Pre-Bomb Marine Reservoir Ages in the Western Pacific

In this study, molluscan shells housed at the University Museum, the University of Tokyo, provided a new set of region-specific correction values ( Δ R) for the western Pacific, in particular for the central part of the main islands in the Japanese Archipelago and the southwest islands of Japan. The values of 40 total samples were calculated from 11 regions. North of the main islands and in the Ryukyu Islands, the mean Δ R values showed comparatively small values, 5-40 14C yr; in the central part of the main islands, these values were 60-90 14C yr.

Dating and Stable Isotope Analysis of Charred Residues from Neolithic Sites in the Primorye, Russian Far East

This study attempts to reconstruct food habits through carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) isotope analysis and C/N analysis of charred residues inside pottery from the Primorye in the Russian Far East (Luzanova Sopka 2, Sergeyevka 1, Boisman 2, and Vetka 2 sites). Dates were obtained that were from the later stages of the Rudnaya culture (6980–6485 BP, 7800–7400 cal BP), proto-Boisman type (6760–6330 BP, 7600–7300 cal BP), Boisman culture (6155–4720 BP, 7100–5400 cal BP), and Vetka culture (6030–5870 BP, 6900–6700 cal BP). There are major differences in the carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios between inland sites (δ 13 C –26.9 to –30.0‰, δ 15 N 7.6 to 9.3‰) and coastal sites (δ 13 C –18.1 to –24.2‰, δ 15 N 9.5 to 14.9‰). The results show that the diet of inland cultures consisted primarily of freshwater fish and terrestrial animals and plants, whereas that of coastal cultures consisted mainly of marine organisms.

New AMS Dates from the Shukubai-Kaso Site (Loc. Sankakuyama), Hokkaido (Japan): Refining the Chronology of Small Flake-Based Assemblages during the Early Upper Paleolithic in the Paleo-Sakhalin-Hokkaido-Kuril Peninsula

ABSTRACT This paper reports accelerator radiocarbon dates obtained from 14 charcoal specimens recovered from the Shukubai-Kaso site (Loc. Sankakuyama), which was excavated in 1973. The small flake-based assemblage from the site has been chronologically attributed to represent the oldest archaeological occupation in Hokkaido. Because the new radiocarbon dates, stratigraphic sequences, and site context do not contradict each other, we conclude that the ages of the archaeological components in Layer III of Shukubai-Kaso (Loc. Sankakuyama) fall within the interval of 29,530 and 28,480 cal yr BP. These ages are close to previously estimated dates for other small flake-based assemblages including the Wakabanomori, Kamiitaira, and Kyu-Shirataki 3 sites. They are also 1500 years older than last glacial maximum (LGM) assemblages on the Paleo-Sakhalin-Hokkaido-Kuril peninsula. These new ages reliably place the small flake-based assemblages in the chronological phase prior to the onset of the LGM.