Implications of multi-modal age distributions in Pleistocene cave deposits: A case study of Maludong palaeoathropological locality, southern China

Ancient DNA and multimethod dating confirm the late arrival of anatomically modern humans in southern China

“…15 to 11 ka (34)(35)(36)(37)(38). However, a recent study utilizing conventional and laser ablation U-Th dating of deer bones and teeth has determined that some fossils from Maludong are in fact Middle Pleistocene in age (39). Thus, this recent work at Maludong combined with the results of our present study strongly implies that most Pleistocene paleoanthropological caves in southern China are likely to exhibit a more complex depositional history than has been assumed (39).…”

“…However, a recent study utilizing conventional and laser ablation U-Th dating of deer bones and teeth has determined that some fossils from Maludong are in fact Middle Pleistocene in age (39). Thus, this recent work at Maludong combined with the results of our present study strongly implies that most Pleistocene paleoanthropological caves in southern China are likely to exhibit a more complex depositional history than has been assumed (39). We would stress, therefore, that until direct dating, preferably using AMS 14 C or aDNA analyses, is successfully conducted on these human remains, their age should probably be regarded as uncertain.…”

A Late Pleistocene human genome from Southwest China

“…In addition, the hominin fossils from these archaeological sites, such as MZR and LLR, all exhibit rich physical anthropological diversities, some of which were thought to overlap with the morphological characteristics of archaic hominins and triggered proposals of different scenarios of human evolution in this area. 12,[20][21][22]29,82 In this study, we provide compelling evidence that the Late Pleistocene MZR from Malu Dong in Southwest China is an AMH. The nuclear genome data indicate that MZR represents an early diversified AMH lineage in East Asia.…”

Taphonomic Analyses of Cave Breccia in Southeast Asia: A Review and Future Directions

“…This can lead to inaccuracies in establishing the age of the deposits, as the fossils found within a single stratum may not be contemporaneous (e.g. O'Connor et al, 2017;Curnoe et al, 2019). The bracketed age derived from capping flowstones can constitute low resolution ages with large errors.…”