Maxime Aubert

Griffith University · Arts, Education and Law Group

Previous dating research indicated that the Indonesian island of Sulawesi is host to some of the oldest known rock art1–3. That work was based on solution uranium-series (U-series) analysis of calcite deposits overlying rock art in the limestone caves of Maros-Pangkep, South Sulawesi1–3. Here we use a novel application of this approach—laser-ablati...

Until recent years, most western scholars had overlooked the existence of rock art in Indonesia or viewed it as being of limited antiquity and of largely regional-interest only. In 2014, however, an Indonesian-Australian team announced the results of a program of Uranium-series (U-series) dating of rock art in Maros-Pangkep, Sulawesi, including a s...

Article accessible for free here: https://rdcu.be/c7HpZ We appreciate the accompanying technical Comment by Murphy et al.1—a group of practicing orthopaedic surgeons—on our original paper2. However, we strongly disagree with their conclusion that a reductionist approach was taken in the diagnosis of surgical amputation in a 31,000-year-old individ...

Late Pleistocene hominin postcranial specimens from Southeast Asia are relatively rare. Here we describe and place into temporal and geographic context two partial femora from the site of Trinil, Indonesia, which are dated stratigraphically and via Uranium-series direct dating to ca. 37–32 ka. The specimens, designated Trinil 9 and 10, include most...

The prevailing view regarding the evolution of medicine is that the emergence of settled agricultural societies around 10,000 years ago (the Neolithic Revolution) gave rise to a host of health problems that had previously been unknown among non-sedentary foraging populations, stimulating the first major innovations in prehistoric medical practices...

The prevailing view regarding the evolution of medicine is that the emergence of agricultural societies around 10,000 years ago (the ‘Neolithic Revolution’) gave rise to a host of health problems that were previously unknown among non-sedentary foraging populations, stimulating the first major innovations in prehistoric medico-socio-cultural practi...

Development of projectile hunting tools remains a significant tenant associated with modern humans' adaptive and migratory success. Technological innovations which accompanied the human odyssey between the now submerged ice-age shelves of Sunda and Sahul (the first major sea crossings by our species) are amongst the most decisive topics of human ev...

Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr / 86Sr) are a key geochemical tracer used in a wide range of fields including archaeology, ecology, food and forensic sciences. These applications are based on the principle that the Sr isotopic ratios of natural materials reflect the sources of strontium available during their formation. A major constraint for curren...

Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr = 86Sr) of biogenic material such as bones and teeth reflect the local sources of strontium ingested as food and drink during their formation. This has led to the use of strontium isotope ratios as a geochemical tracer in a wide range of fields including archaeology, ecology, food studies and forensic sciences. In ord...

A Sensitive High Resolution Ion MicroProbe (SHRIMP II) has been used to make high spatial resolution in situ micro-analyses of oxygen isotopes in fish otoliths, and teeth from fossil herbivores and a Neanderthal. Large intra-tooth variations in the oxygen isotopic composition (up to 9&) were observed in the enamel of herbivores from the Neanderthal...

Gambar Cadas dengan motif perahu di Indonesia ditemukan dalam jumlah yang cukup melimpah. Situs-situs tersebut terutama ditemukan di wilayah Sulawesi, Kalimantan, dan Maluku. Motif perahu yang ditemukan tersebut memiliki bentuk yang bervariasi. Keberagaman tersebut mendorng penelitian ini untuk mendokumentasikan dan memberikan gambararan mengenai b...

Major gaps remain in our knowledge of the early history of Homo sapiens in Wallacea. By 70–60 thousand years ago (ka), modern humans appear to have entered this distinct biogeographical zone between continental Asia and Australia. Despite this, there are relatively few Late Pleistocene sites attributed to our species in Wallacea. H. sapiens fossil...

The Indonesian island of Sulawesi harbours numerous early rock paintings of the endemic Sulawesi warty pig ( Sus celebensis ). Several S. celebensis images, including one dated to at least 45,500 years ago (ka), portray these suids with an anatomical character not observed in the living species: a pair of teat‐like protuberances in the neck area. T...

The equatorial tropics house some of the earliest rock art yet known, and it is weathering at an alarming rate. Here we present evidence for haloclasty (salt crystallisation) from Pleistocene-aged rock art panels at 11 sites in the Maros-Pangkep limestone karsts of southern Sulawesi. We show how quickly rock art panels have degraded in recent decad...

Indonesia harbors some of the oldest known surviving cave art. Previously, the earliest dated rock art from this region was a figurative painting of a Sulawesi warty pig (Sus celebensis). This image from Leang Bulu' Sipong 4 in the limestone karsts of Maros-Pangkep, South Sulawesi, was created at least 43,900 years ago (43.9 ka) based on Uranium-se...

Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr / 86Sr) of biogenic material such as bones and teeth reflect the local sources of strontium ingested as food and drink during their formation. This has led to the use of strontium isotope ratios as a geochemical tracer in a wide range of fields including archaeology, ecology, food studies and forensic sciences. In ord...

Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr/86Sr) of biogenic carbonates such as bones and teeth reflect the local sources of strontium ingested as food and drink during their formation. This has led to the use of strontium isotope ratios as a geochemical tracer in a wide range of fields including archaeology, ecology, food studies and forensic sciences. In ord...

The cranium from Broken Hill (Kabwe) was recovered from cave deposits in 1921, during metal ore mining in what is now Zambia¹. It is one of the best-preserved skulls of a fossil hominin, and was initially designated as the type specimen of Homo rhodesiensis, but recently it has often been included in the taxon Homo heidelbergensis2,3,4. However, th...

Humans seem to have an adaptive predisposition for inventing, telling and consuming stories¹. Prehistoric cave art provides the most direct insight that we have into the earliest storytelling2–5, in the form of narrative compositions or ‘scenes’2,5 that feature clear figurative depictions of sets of figures in spatial proximity to each other, and f...

The occurrence of multi-modal ages for inclusions contained within cave sediments is probably far more widespread and problematic than has been appreciated by archaeologists until now. This phenomenon is likely to be a relatively common situation in caves especially in tropical/sub-tropical areas like southern China where karstification and sedimen...

Rock art comprises various forms of images and markings, including paintings, drawings, and engravings, created by prehistoric people on immobile surfaces of rocks. In Indonesia, the distribution of rock art sites has been relatively well studied and documented. Indeed, Uranium-series analysis of speleothem materials overlying negative hand stencil...

Figurative cave paintings from the Indonesian island of Sulawesi date to at least 35,000 years ago (ka) and hand-stencil art from the same region has a minimum date of 40 ka1. Here we show that similar rock art was created during essentially the same time period on the adjacent island of Borneo. Uranium-series analysis of calcium carbonate deposits...

Rock art in the Maros karsts of Sulawesi, Indonesia, has generated interest on a global level. Uranium-series dating has shown that a hand stencil in this region was created at least 40,000-years ago, a finding that dramatically backdates the known antiquity of local rock art that had long been assumed to have been of early Austronesian (i.e., Neol...

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0193025.].

The skeletal remains of Late Pleistocene-early Holocene humans are exceptionally rare in island Southeast Asia. As a result, the identity and physical adaptations of the early inhabitants of the region are poorly known. One archaeological locality that has historically been important for understanding the peopling of island Southeast Asia is the Ni...

Body dimensions (mm) for mandible D/N5 42–48". (DOCX)

U-Th isotope data from solution U-series analysis for three human mandibles from the West Mouth of the Niah Caves. (DOCX)

Body dimensions (mm) for mandible E/B1 100". (DOCX)

Mandible E/W 33 24–66" from the West Mouth of the Niah Caves. (DOCX)

Results from laser ablation U-series analysis of mandible E/B1 100". (DOCX)

Raw data from Neolithic mandibles from the West Mouth of the Niah Caves and published mandibles. (DOCX)

Fragment of bone from medial surface of E/B1 100" showing the two laser tracks from laser ablation U-series analyses. (DOCX)

This paper presents a reassessment of the archaeological record at Leang Burung 2, a key early human occupation site in the Late Pleistocene of Southeast Asia. Excavated originally by Ian Glover in 1975, this limestone rock-shelter in the Maros karsts of Sulawesi, Indonesia, has long held significance in our understanding of early human dispersals...

Genetic evidence for anatomically modern humans (AMH) out of Africa before 75 thousand years ago (ka) and in island southeast Asia (ISEA) before 60 ka (93-61 ka) predates accepted archaeological records of occupation in the region. Claims that AMH arrived in ISEA before 60 ka (ref. 4) have been supported only by equivocal or non-skeletal evidence....

Laser ablation U-series dating results on a human cranial bone fragment from Apidima, on the western cost of the Mani Peninsula, Southern Greece, indicate a minimum age of 160,000 years. The dated cranial fragment belongs to Apidima 2, which preserves the facial skeleton and a large part of the braincase, lacking the occipital bone. The morphology...

Significance We present evidence from the Late Pleistocene of Sulawesi, Indonesia, where an unusually rich and unique symbolic complex was excavated from archaeological deposits spanning 30,000 to 22,000 y ago. Including previously unknown practices of self-ornamentation, used ochre, pigmented artifacts, and portable art, these findings advance our...

Wallacea, the zone of oceanic islands separating the continental regions of Southeast Asia and Australia, has yielded sparse evidence for the symbolic culture of early modern humans. Here we report evidence for symbolic activity 30,000–22,000 y ago at Leang Bulu Bettue, a cave and rock-shelter site on the Wallacean island of Sulawesi. We describe h...

Dating is basic for archaeological and paleontological investigations and results of different dating methods used in Azokh caves are described in this chapter. Fossils from Azokh were not dated by any method previously. Lithic technology and taxonomy suggested a middle Pleistocene age for Unit V (from where Acheulian industries and a human mandibl...

The non-destructive nature of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometers is a principal reason for an increase in their use in archaeological science over the last 15 years, especially for analysing museum-curated artefacts and in situ site fabrics. Here, we show that low power XRF spectrometry can be detrimental for luminescence dating (surface applic...

Strontium isotope ratios measured in fossil human teeth are a powerful tool to investigate past mobility patterns. In order to apply this method, the sample needs to be investigated for possible diagenetic alteration and a least destructive analytical technique needs to be employed for the isotopic analysis. We tested the useability of U, Th, and Z...

Homo floresiensis, a primitive hominin species discovered in Late Pleistocene sediments at Liang Bua (Flores, Indonesia), has generated wide interest and scientific debate. A major reason this taxon is controversial is because the H. floresiensis-bearing deposits, which include associated stone artefacts and remains of other extinct endemic fauna,...

The volcanic origin of the sediments from Sulawesi, Indonesia, provides a particular challenge for luminescence dating due to the dim optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) from quartz, and the high anomalous fading rate in the infrared (IR) stimulated lumines-cence (IRSL) from feldspars. In this study, we present results of dating the sanidine fe...

Archaeologists have long been puzzled by the appearance in Europe ∼40-35 thousand years (kyr) ago of a rich corpus of sophisticated artworks, including parietal art (that is, paintings, drawings and engravings on immobile rock surfaces) and portable art (for example, carved figurines), and the absence or scarcity of equivalent, well-dated evidence...

We report the identification of minerals in stratified paint layers from a Wandjina motif in the central Kimberley region, Western Australia, via synchrotron powder diffraction. Interpreting our findings with reference to previous pigment characterisations of Wandjina motifs, we outline the potential of this method for rock art investigations. We p...

Three terrestrial climate proxies are used to investigate the evolution of Holocene palaeoenvironments in southern central Australia, all of which present a coherent record of palaeohydrology. Single-grain optically stimulated luminescence from sediments supplemented by 14C from charcoal and lacustrine shells was obtained to date shoreline deposits...

Distinctive mulberry paintings found in northern Australia, particularly those of the Kimberley region, have been argued to represent some of the oldest surviving rock art on the continent. Significant research efforts continue to focus on resolving the age of these motifs, but comparatively little attention has been given to understanding their ph...

The 1950s excavations by Charles McBurney in the Haua Fteah, a large karstic cave on the coast of northeast Libya, revealed a deep sequence of human occupation. Most subsequent research on North African prehistory refers to his discoveries and interpretations, but the chronology of its archaeological and geological sequences has been based on very...

Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr/86Sr) are a key geochemical tracer used in a wide range of fields including archaeology, ecology, food and forensic sciences. These applications are based on the principle that the Sr isotopic ratios of natural materials reflect the sources of strontium available during their formation. A major constraint for current...

While it is generally accepted that modern humans evolved in Africa, the specific physical evidence for that origin remains disputed. The modern-looking Omo 1 skeleton, discovered in the Kibish region of Ethiopia in 1967, was controversially dated at ∼130 ka (thousands of years ago) by U-series dating on associated Mollusca, and it was not until 20...

The combined U-series/electron spin resonance (ESR) dating method was applied to nine teeth from two Early Pleistocene archaeological sites located in the Orce area (Guadix-Baza Basin, Southern Spain): Fuente Nueva-3 (FN-3) and Barranco León (BL). The combination of biostratigraphy and magnetostratigraphy places both sites between the Olduvai and J...

This paper critically reviews the various approaches used to estimate the age of the rock art in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. They include: (i) the relative superimposition of styles; (ii) the use of diagnostic subject matter (depictions of extinct animals, stone tool technology, introduced European and Asian objects and animals); (ii...

Abstract: We have measured detailed U-concentration and U-series maps on three cross-sections of an Early Pleistocene equid tooth from the archaeological site of Fuente Nueva-3 (Orce, Andalusia, Spain). This permits, for the first time, to visualise U migration processes in 3D. The tooth shows a concentration gradient from the top to the base, indi...

Summary of elemental and U-series analysis for Tracks 7 to 12. Left hand panels: U, and Th elemental concentrations and age calculations. The age results indicated by arrows and circles are discussed in the text. Right hand panels: Relationship between calculated age and U-concentration. (TIF)

Summary of elemental and U-series analysis for Tracks 1 to 6. Left hand panels: U, and Th elemental concentrations and age calculations. Right hand panels: Relationship between calculated age and U-concentration. (TIF)

Mahalanobis D2 among groups used in this study. Below the diagonal are values corrected for unequal sample sizes. Sample labels as in Tables 1 and 2. (DOCX)

Landmarks and semi landmarks used in the analysis (DOCX)

Cross section of the bone sample used for laser ablation U and Th elemental as well as U-series analysis. Arrows indicate the position of the scans shown in Figures S1 and S2. (TIF)

In recent years the Later Stone Age has been redated to a much deeper time depth than previously thought. At the same time, human remains from this time period are scarce in Africa, and even rarer in West Africa. The Iwo Eleru burial is one of the few human skeletal remains associated with Later Stone Age artifacts in that region with a proposed Pl...

The palaeontological site of Venta Micena (Orce, Andalusia, Spain) lies in the eastern sector of the Guadix–Baza basin, one of the best documented areas in Europe for Plio-Pleistocene biostratigraphy. The combination of biochronological and palaeomagnetic results, combined with the radiometric data obtained for Atapuerca Sima del Elefante, indicate...

Results for ESR and U-series analyses for Jigar samples. (XLS)

Sedimentology, stratigraphy, and implications for the dated samples. 1.1 Description of Sedimentology and Stratigraphy. 1.1.1a Sedimentological overview. 1.1.1b Stratigraphic relations and depositional history of dated volcaniclastic and faunal samples. 1.1.1c References. 1.2 Figure and legend. Figure 1.2.1. Sedimentary features of the “20-m terrac...

Results of incremental heating analyses for 40Ar/39Ar analyses for Ngandong, Jigar and Pohjajar pumices. (XLSX)

Taphonomy of faunal remains from Jigar. 2.1 Taphonomy: materials, methods, and results. 2.2 Figures and legend for taphonomy. Figure 2.2.1 Maximum bone length. Figure 2.2.2 Surface readability. (PDF)

Homo erectus was the first human lineage to disperse widely throughout the Old World, the only hominin in Asia through much of the Pleistocene, and was likely ancestral to H. sapiens. The demise of this taxon remains obscure because of uncertainties regarding the geological age of its youngest populations. In 1996, some of us co-published electron...