Human occupation of the northern Arabian interior during early Marine Isotope Stage 3
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Parton, Ash
Clark-Balzan, Laine
White, Tom S
Groucutt, Huw S
Breeze, Paul S
Parker, Adrian G
Drake, Nick A
Petraglia, Michael D
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Abstract
The early part of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 (ca. 60–50 ka) is a crucial period for studying human demography and behaviour in south-west Asia, and how these relate to climatic changes. However, the archaeological and palaeoenvironmental records for MIS 3 in critical areas such as the Arabian Peninsula remain poorly developed. Here, we present findings from the Al Marrat basin in the Nefud desert, which provides the first clear evidence for both increased humidity and human occupation of the interior of northern Arabia during early MIS 3. A Middle Palaeolithic assemblage, dated by optically stimulated luminescence to ca. 55 ka, was found stratified within a sequence of relict palustrine deposits indicative of shallow water body formation in the Al Marrat basin. Hominin presence in northern Arabia at this time coincides with the intensification and northward displacement of monsoon rainfall systems during a period of maximum insolation. These findings add to a growing corpus of palaeoenvironmental evidence, which indicates that the Arabian interior was neither arid nor unpopulated during early MIS 3, and that hydrodynamic responses to enhanced moisture availability facilitated demographic expansions into the Arabian interior.
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Journal of Quaternary Science
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31
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8
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© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Human occupation of the northern Arabian interior during early Marine Isotope Stage 3, Journal of Quaternary Science, 2016, 31 (8), pp. 953-966, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.2920. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.
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Geology
Physical geography and environmental geoscience
Archaeology
Science & Technology
Physical Sciences
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Physical Geography
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Jennings, RP; Parton, A; Clark-Balzan, L; White, TS; Groucutt, HS; Breeze, PS; Parker, AG; Drake, NA; Petraglia, MD, Human occupation of the northern Arabian interior during early Marine Isotope Stage 3, Journal of Quaternary Science, 2016, 31 (8), pp. 953-966