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The age when the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) transitioned to a bamboo dominant diet has not been well established due to the lack of fossil evidence. In particular, a radial sesamoid bone, which acts as a 'pseudo-thumb', has been used as evidence of giant pandas' adaptive evolution to bamboo specialised consumption, but no relevant fossil evidence has been reported thus far. Shuanghe Cave is the longest cave in Asia, and produced fossils of more than 20 giant pandas, including relatively intact fossil skeletons of two adult giant pandas. The uranium-series dating of the fossilised teeth of the two giant pandas indicates ages earlier than 102 ka and 49 ka. Tooth wear for both individuals is not apparent, indicating that they were young at the time of death. From the skeletal fossils, for the first time, a 'pseudo-thumb' fossil of a giant panda was discovered. Our morphological comparison indicated that as early as 100,000 years ago, giant pandas had evolved an enlarged radial sesamoid bone (pseudo-thumb) that is comparable to that of the modern pandas, suggesting that in the early Late Pleistocene at the latest, giant pandas possessed physical conditions allowing them to dexterously grab bamboo with their manuss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gigantopithecus was a great ape once lived in Southeast Asia and China during the Pleistocene, and the northernmost evidence of its presence is presently known from the Longgupo and Jianshi Longgudong sites located in the West-Hubei and Three Gorges region in Southof China. Here, we report the first radiometric dating by ESR/U-series method on mammalian teeth of Jianshi Longgudong site which was found in 1970s, and renowned by the discovery of both possible hominin and Gigantopithecus fossils in association with undoubted stone artifacts. As the cave site was completely emptied by the successive excavations, the analyzed teeth were selected from museum collections while the dosimetry was established from reworked sediments sampled on the site. The results obtained on two fossil teeth from the lower layer 8 give a weighted mean age of 1512 ± 94 ka, while a mean age of 1044 ± 53 ka was obtained for two other teeth from the upper layer 4. These ESR/U-series dating results, in agreement with the fauna record, are younger than the previous paleomagnetic dating interpretation and suggest that Jianshi Longgudong sequence is younger than the Olduvai subchron and the neighboring Longgupo site dated by the same methods to ca 2.2–2.5 Ma. • Northernmost evidence of the Gigantopithecus is dated by radiometric dating method. • The misinterpretation of the paleomagnetic results of Longgudong site is corrected. • Dating results indicate Gigantopithecus survival with hominin during Pleistocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the results of the first dating study of site P13 at Pirro Nord, Italy, which documents some of the earliest evidence for hominin presence in western Europe. Our multi-technique dating approach is based on a combination of palaeomagnetism, electron spin resonance (ESR), thermally-transferred optically stimulated luminescence (TT-OSL) and combined U-series/ESR applied to both fossil material and host sediment. It provides ages ranging from 627 ± 59 to 1006 ± 126 ka and clustering around 0.8 Ma. One additional fossil tooth collected from the nearby P10 site also returns an age within this range. Ordinarily, this outcome would naturally lend itself to the straightforward conclusion that Pirro Nord has a late Early Pleistocene age of ∼0.8 Ma. However, this interpretation is complicated by the fact that these numerical dating results are in contradiction with the biochronological evidence, which suggests a much older age on the order of 1.3–1.7 Ma. Consequently, we explore the various potential sources of bias that could have influenced the numerical dating methods and the biochronological inferences. In particular, the critical evaluation of the palaeomagnetic data available for various sites belonging to the younger Colle Curti Faunal Unit (FU) indicates that there is non-negligible age uncertainty on the allegedly minimum age of ∼1.1 Ma traditionally assigned to the Pirro FU. Moreover, while the combined U-series/ESR dataset could accommodate an older age for the fossil remains if uranium uptake in the dental tissues occurred relatively rapidly before the closure of the system (CSUS model), the ages obtained from the two semi-independent quartz dating methods (ESR and TT-OSL) both appear to indicate that the sediment was last exposed to sunlight about 0.8 Ma. This disparity opens up the possibility that the sediment and fossil assemblage may not be coeval. In other words, it is possible that the fossil remains may have been reworked into younger deposits that entered the karst about 0.8 Ma. Though feasible from a karst sedimentary dynamics perspective, this hypothesis is not consistent with previous taphonomic studies that indicate an absence of evidence for fossil reworking after entering the karst. At the very least, our dating results indicate that site formation processes at Pirro Nord site P13 are more complex than previously considered. • This is the first dating study of archaeological site P13 at Pirro Nord, Italy. • Numerical age results cluster around ∼0.8 Ma, contradicting the biochronological evidence. • We investigate the possibility that fossils and host sediment may not be coeval. • Site formation processes at P13 are probably more complex than previously considered. • We re-examine the chronologies available for various Early Pleistocene sites in Italy and Spain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

North African coastal Middle Stone Age (MSA) sites are key to study the development and expansion of early H. sapiens. El Mnasra cave on the Atlantic coast of Morocco (Témara region) is a crucial site associated with MSA archaeological materials considered advanced cognitive hallmarks of behavioural innovation, such as numerous Nassariidae perforated shells, hematite pigments, bones industry and coastal resources exploitation. We provide new trapped-charges dates (OSL and combined US-ESR ages). Our Bayesian modelling strengthens the new lithostratigraphic interpretation of the cave stratigraphic units (US) and we propose an updated chronostratigraphic model for the Middle Stone Age archaeo-sequence of El Mnasra Cave. We confirm a human presence between 124–104 ka, earlier than what the previous OSL and US-ESR data showed. Our time range intervals allowed us to also extend the age of the MSA occupations considerably to the MIS 4/3 (~62–30 ka), marked by the disappearance of the Nassariidae perforated shells. Outstandingly, our model pushed back the age of the largest record of Nassariidae perforated shells and placed the age of their use by the Aterian groups at El Mnasra from the MIS 5d-5b (~115–94 ka). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study reports the results of the first direct Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) dating study of Homo antecessor , the oldest known hominin species identified in Western Europe. The analysis of a tooth (ATD6-92) from TD6 unit of Atapuerca Gran Dolina (Spain) following a “semi non-destructive” procedure provides a final age estimate ranging from 624 to 949 ka, which covers all possible uranium uptake scenarios. Last, the additional magnetostratigraphic data collected within TD6 enables to further constrain the initial ESR chronology and to propose an age of between 772 and 949 ka for Homo antecessor , in agreement with previous dating works. Although our new results do not refine the existing chronology of TD6 unit, they nevertheless support the antiquity of H. antecessor , which pre-dates the estimated divergence age of modern and archaic human lineages based on genetic evidence. This work illustrates the challenges of dating human teeth by means of the ESR method, with the main pitfalls that are sometimes inherent to this specific application (e.g., systematic μCT-scanning of fossil hominin teeth; limited knowledge about the original sedimentary environment for teeth coming from old excavations; heterogeneous spatial distribution of the U-series elements in dental tissues). We identified several sources of uncertainty that may directly impact the accuracy of the age result. In particular, a slight contamination of dentine (<6%) in the enamel fragment measured by ESR was found to induce a significant age underestimation (33%) if not taken into consideration. It indeed caused not only a D E underestimation (by about 8%), but also produced a massive internal dose rate overestimation (by a factor of about 3.5). In contrast, other sources of uncertainty, such as the heterogeneity of the sedimentary environment, the variability of the water content over time, the previous μCT-scanning of the tooth or the potential preferential creation of unstable NOCORs in the ESR signal, showed here a limited impact on the final age result. Given our current understanding of the ESR method and the existing uncertainties associated with the evaluation of the D E and dose rate, this is probably as far as we can presently go in the dating study of ATD6-92 sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the discovery of a new mammalian assemblage at Mocun cave in 2000 by the Natural History Museum of Guangxi. The Mocun site is located in a residual karst peak in southwest Guangxi, south China. Abundant mammalian fossil teeth and bones were extracted from relatively thick deposits, well constrained stratigraphically. The results show that 1) the Mocun fauna is composed of typical species of the " Ailuropoda - Stegodon association", including Stegodon, Ailuropoda, Rhinoceros, Pongo, Tapiru s, Megatapirus, and Elephas, common in the Middle to the Late Pleistocene, with a larger portion of modern species; 2) By employing U-series dating (MC-ICP-MS) method on both the soda straw stalactites and mammalian teeth collected from deposits, the age of the Mocun fauna has been constrained between 66 and 101 ka, a transitional period from the interglacial stage MIS5 to the beginning of the last glacial stage (MIS4), representing one of the securely dated Late Pleistocene sites in southern China so far; 3) The composition in large mammals suggests a forested environment which harboured a great biodiversity in large species; 4) The taphonomic analysis indicates that the fossil accumulation is mainly due to activities of porcupines and to water flows; 5) Interestingly, our taxonomic study reveals some changes in the occurrence of Tapirus sinensis and Megatapirus augustus between ∼66 and ∼86 Ka, along with a change in the abundance of artiodactyls versus primates. It remains to demonstrate with more comprehensive records if these changes may be related to the mid-Late Pleistocene climatic transition. • a new mammalian fauna cave site (Mocun cave) with accurate date to 66 and 101 ka in southwest Guangxi. • The composition in large mammals suggests a compatible habitat for a great biodiversity of species. • Some changes between layers with Tapirus sinensis replaced by Megatapirus augustus between ∼66 and ∼86 Ka, along with a change in the abundance of artiodactyls versus primates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discovered accidently during factory building construction works, the Middle Palaeolithic site of Biache-Saint-Vaast (Pas-de-Calais, France) was excavated from 1976 to 1982 by a team of Lille University directed by Alain Tuffreau. An abundant archaeological and paleontological material, including two human skulls, was there recovered from fossil alluvial deposits of the Scarpe River. In order to determine the ages of these remains, the ESR/U-series method was applied on bone and teeth. As the U-series data obtained of the main part of the analyzed tissues do not allow the use of the classical US-ESR model, the recently proposed AU-ESR model, taking into account if necessary U-leaching from some of the tissues, was used to calculate combined ESR/U-series ages for these samples. The obtained ages suggest a MIS7 attribution to the faunal remains and permit an age of ca 240 ka to be assigned for the human remains and associated archaeological material, in accordance with the stratigraphic data and the large mammal associations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several caves of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, southern China, have delivered Gigantopithecus blacki remains, an extinct Pleistocene giant ape, in association with abundant mammalian faunas. To determine their geological ages, fossil teeth from Mohui and Sanhe Caves were dated using the coupled ESR/U-series method. The teeth from Mohui Cave gave age estimates of 1.69 ± 0.22 Ma and 1.29 ± 0.11 Ma. The Sanhe Cave samples had age estimates ranging from 910 ± 200 ka to 600 ± 150 ka with error weighted mean ages of 890 ± 130 ka and 720 ± 90 ka for the layers 5 and 4, respectively. Our results and previous paleomagnestism data place the Gigantopithecus fauna at Mohui Cave between Olduvai and Jaramillo subchrons and suggest that it was coeval with Chuifeng, Longgupo and Liucheng assemblages. The Sanhe fauna is younger, of late early Pleistocene age, and can be dated to the period between Jaramillo subchron and B/M boundary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, the combined electron spin resonance (ESR) and U-series dating method has been widely applied to date fossil teeth for archaeological studies through the use of the US-ESR model. The obtained age, compatible with both the ESR and U-series data determined in all dental tissues and the burial environment, is more flexible and reliable than the parametric uptake ages (by early, linear or recent uptake models), for which selection was often based on the expected age of the site. In this paper, the mathematical basis of the US-ESR model is described in detail, from the U-uptake description to the calculation of accumulation dose in the sample and the US-ESR age determination. An example is used to illustrate the calculation of the US-ESR age, associated dose rates and U-uptake parameters. While the description in this paper is specific to US-ESR model and more largely combined ESR/U-series dating of fossil teeth, we expect that some of the principles can be used in other applications of U-series dating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yumidong (Corn Cave) is a newly discovered Paleolithic site in the Three Gorges region of central China. Numerous Paleolithic artifacts have been excavated from the sedimentary deposits of the cave in association with faunal remains attributed to the Middle-Late Pleistocene Ailuropoda - Stegodon fauna of southern China. To establish the chronology of the sedimentary sequence (>5 m thick), 14C dating was applied to bone and charcoal samples (n = 6); the U-series method was used to date in situ precipitated speleothems (n = 12), transported speleothem samples (n = 6) and 18 subsamples of a fossil tooth; and the coupled ESR/U-series method was used to date fossil teeth (n = 6). The derived dates were combined using a hierarchical Bayesian approach to generate a unified chronostratigraphy for the Yumidong sequence. In our Bayesian analyses, the 14C and coupled ESR/U-series dates were considered to provide direct age estimates for the target layers, while the U-series dates of the in situ precipitated speleothems and fossil tooth were used as minimum age constraints and those of the transported speleothem fragments as maximum age constraints. The Bayesian analyses provided robust time intervals for the archeological layers: L2-Upper (14–23 ka), L2-Lower (27–63 ka), L3 (106–171 ka), L4 (140–192 ka), L10 (157–229 ka), L11 (181–256 ka), and L12 (214–274 ka) with a probability of 95%, allowing the establishment of a ∼300 ka long geological and archeological history for the Yumidong site and placing it as a reference site for Paleolithic cultural evolution in the Three Gorges region from the late Middle Pleistocene to Late Pleistocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The combination of electron spin resonance (ESR) and U-series dating approach is increasingly being used to fossil teeth from archaeological sites. A rigorous age uncertainty assessment is needed for this dating method. However, it is difficult to provide partial derivatives of the combined ESR/U-series (US) model, as required by the law of propagation of uncertainties. In this study, we developed a new age calculation MATLAB program, called USESR, using a Monte Carlo approach for estimating the age and the age uncertainty for tooth enamel. Tests have been performed with virtual samples (n = 64). The results suggest that this Monte Carlo approach can provide reliable US-ESR age and reduced age uncertainty in comparison with those obtained by the routinely used program, DATA. The results also show that the new program has higher tolerance limits of U-series disequilibrium than the DATA program for US-ESR age calculations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Longgupo Cave site, located in Wushan County, Chongqing, China has attracted continuous attention since its discovery of hominid remains in association with late Pliocene-early Pleistocene fauna and numerous lithic artefacts. In 2003–2006, new excavation was carried out on this site, allowing the description of a detailed stratigraphy of the highly complex cave infillings and the sampling of teeth for combined ESR/U-series analyses. Here we report preliminary dating results of seven herbivorous fossil teeth from different archaeological layers of the lowest geological unit (C III). Uranium-series analyses indicate that no obvious uranium leaching has occurred and all the teeth (except one) underwent a very recent uranium uptake history. The obtained US-ESR results show that the age of six teeth are basically consistent, between ∼1.4 and 1.8 Ma. At the same time, we observed an inverse correlation of two samples with the stratigraphical sequence. This could be caused by the distinct uranium uptake history of one sample, high uranium content in the enamel for another or bad estimation of external dose rate. Due to the complexity of the stratigraphic sequence, supplementary in situ gamma dose rate measurement should be performed for all the samples during the following excavations in order to confirm this preliminary ESR/U-series chronology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The area of Pléneuf-Val-André, Brittany, France, has delivered several Palaeolithic sites containing palaeontological remains, very rare into this granitic area. In order to precise the stratigraphical framework of the prehistoric human occupations of this zone, an ESR dating program was initiated in the late 1980s and different kinds of materials (mammal bones and teeth, naturally bleached quartz extracted from marine or aeolian sediments and marine mollusc shells) were then sampled for geochronological analyses. The present paper displays the main obtained results on three stratigraphically connected middle Palaeolithic sites: Piégu, Les Vallées and Nantois. The results are consistent with the regional chronostratigraphic framework and permit to suggest palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of the area and the dating of the various archaeological evidences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Combined ESR/U-series dating of tooth enamel using US model implies the calculation of a specific parameter p for each dental tissue to reconstruct its U-uptake history. The US model simulates this history as a continuous incorporation process without leaching, where the 238U–234U–230Th system evolves towards secular equilibrium state. Consequently, the application of this model is restricted to the samples displaying 230Th/234U activity ratio below or close to equilibrium with maximum value of ∼1.05 for each tissue. In order to overcome this limitation, here, a new model named Accelerating Uptake (AU) model is proposed. This model describes U-uptake into dental tissue as an accelerating process by the introduction of two parameters, the initial uptake rate and the acceleration of this uptake rate. The AU model is then able to reconstruct a process combining incorporation followed by leaching, as well as continuous uptake one. With this model, the evolution of 230Th/234U activity ratio with time can reach values higher than unity, even beyond equilibrium. The AU model is useful in cases for which age estimates cannot be calculated by routine use of US model. The application of the AU model to the palaeoanthropological site of Mauer in Germany shows its potential for extending the applicability of the combined ESR/U-series dating of tooth enamel. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: 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 Jaramillo subchrons (1.78–1.07Ma). Our results highlight the difficulty of dating such old sites and point out the limits of the combined U-series/ESR dating method based on the US model. We identified several sources of uncertainties that may lead to inaccurate age estimates. Seven samples could not be dated because the dental tissues had (230Th/234U) activity ratios higher than equilibrium, indicating that uranium had probably leached from these tissues. It was however possible to calculate numerical estimates for two of the teeth, both from FN-3. One yielded a Middle Pleistocene age that seems to be strongly underestimated; the other provided an age of 1.19±0.21Ma, in agreement with data obtained from independent methods. The latter result gives encouragement that there are samples that can be used for routine dating of old sites. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Dali skull is a key fossil for understanding human evolution in China. It has been attributed either to an archaic Homo sapiens, an evolved Homo erectus or to other species of Homo, such as Homo heidelbergensis. The cranium was discovered in 1978 in Shaanxi Province in a fluvial terrace which was recovered by a loessic sequence including two interglacial palaeosoils. ESR/U-series data analyses were carried out on several teeth recovered from the palaeoanthropological level. Four samples exhibit different kinds of uranium-uptake behaviour, but the results seem to indicate that the cranium is coeval with Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 8 and that some teeth might be reworked from older deposits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stratigraphic sequences of numerous Palaeolithic sites of Central and Southern Italy, very rich in both archaeological and palaeontological remains, have also recorded Pleistocene volcanic events through volcanic ash deposits (tephra). They allow the establishment of an accurate chronological framework by comparing results obtained by 40Ar/39Ar dating method on single volcanic K-feldspar crystals, with those derived from ESR and ESR/U-series analyses on fluvial bleached quartz and tooth enamel respectively. Since 2009, these three methods were hence applied on samples of several Middle Pleistocene sites of Central and Southern Italy including both volcanic and archaeological levels (from the west to the east): La Polledrara di Cecanibbio, Isoletta, (Latium), Guado San Nicola, Isernia La Pineta (Molise), Valle Giumentina (Abruzzo) and Venosa Notarchirico (Basilicata). The obtained results, covering a time range from 660 to 350 ka, prove that such a multi-method approach when possible is essential to constrain the chronology of each site and allow the recognition of the specific limitations due to the lack of quartz for ESR or to complex geochemical histories in teeth rendering difficult the ESR/U-series method. Despite these limitations, the ESR framework is globally in agreement with the 40Ar/39Ar chronology, while ESR/U-series dates can be underestimated for the oldest sites. In such cases, an isochron approach attests however of the quite good reliability of the palaeodosimetric reconstruction and the observed age underestimation could be related to other factors affecting the ESR age determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rarity of Pongo fossils with precise absolute dating from the Middle Pleistocene hampers our understanding of the taxonomy and spatiotemporal distribution of Quaternary orangutans in southern China. Here, we report a newly discovered sample of 113 isolated teeth of fossil Pongo from Zhongshan Cave in the Bubing Basin, Guangxi, southern China. We describe the Pongo specimens from Zhongshan Cave and compare them metrically to other samples of fossil Pongo species (i.e., Pongo weidenreichi , Pongo devosi , Pongo duboisi , Pongo palaeosumatrensis , Pongo javensis , and Pongo sp.) and to extant orangutans (i.e., Pongo pygmaeus and Pongo abelii). The Zhongshan Pongo assemblage is dated using U-series and coupled electron spin resonance/U-series methods. Our results reasonably constrain the Zhongshan Pongo assemblage to 184 ± 16 ka, which is consistent with the biostratigraphic evidence. The Zhongshan Pongo teeth are only 6.5% larger on average than those of extant Pongo. The Zhongshan teeth are smaller overall than those of Pongo from all other cave sites in southern China, and they currently represent the smallest fossil orangutans in southern China. Based on their dental size, and the presence of a well-developed lingual pillar and lingual cingulum on the upper and lower incisors, an intermediate frequency of lingual cingulum remnants on the upper molars, and a higher frequency of moderate to heavy wrinkling on the upper and lower molars, we provisionally assign the Zhongshan fossils to P. devosi. Our results confirm earlier claims that P. weidenreichi is replaced by a smaller species in southern China, P. devosi , by the late Middle Pleistocene. The occurrence of P. devosi in Zhongshan Cave further extends its spatial and temporal distribution. The Pongo specimens from Zhongshan provide important new evidence to demonstrate that the dental morphological features of Pongo in southern China changed substantially during the late Middle Pleistocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pongo fossil record of China extends from the Early Pleistocene to the Late Pleistocene, but to date, no late Middle Pleistocene samples of Pongo with precise absolute dating have been identified in southern China. Here, we report the recovery of 106 fossil teeth of Pongo from Ganxian Cave in the Bubing Basin, Guangxi, southern China. We dated the speleothems using Uranium-series and dated the two rhinoceros teeth using coupled electron spin resonance/Uranium-series dating methods to between 168.9 ± 2.4 ka and 362 ± 78 ka, respectively. These dates are consistent with the biostratigraphic and magnetostratigraphic age estimates. We further describe the fossil teeth from Ganxian Cave and compare them metrically to samples of fossil Pongo (i.e., Pongo weidenreichi , Pongo duboisi , Pongo palaeosumatrensis , Pongo javensis , and Pongo sp.) from the Early, Middle, and Late Pleistocene and to extant Pongo (i.e., Pongo pygmaeus and Pongo abelii) from Southeast Asia. Based on overall dental size, a high frequency of lingual cingulum remnants on the upper molars, and a low frequency of moderate to heavy wrinkling on the molars, we attribute the Ganxian fossils to P. weidenreichi. Compared with Pongo fossils from other mainland Southeast Asia sites, those from Ganxian confirm that dental size reduction of Pongo occurred principally during the Early and Middle Pleistocene. From the Middle to Late Pleistocene, all teeth except the P3 show little change in occlusal area, indicating that the size of these teeth remained relatively stable over time. The evolutionary trajectory of the Pongo dentition through time may be more complex than previously thought. More orangutan fossils with precise dating constraints are the keys to solving this issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

– Tourville-la-Rivière (Normandy, France) is one of the rare Middle Pleistocene palaeoanthropological localities of Northern France. Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) and combined ESR/U-series dating methods were independently applied by different teams on sediments and teeth from this site. The present work provides an overview of this multi-laboratory dating work by integrating a description and discussion of the methodologies employed and results obtained. Results confirm that the ESR/U-series analyses of the teeth are greatly dependent on the U-uptake histories of the dental tissues. Although all teeth come from the same archeological level, the samples analysed by each team display two different patterns for the U-series data. This is most likely related to the different sampling areas selected by each team and may be interpreted as the result of local variations in the geochemical conditions of the surrounding environment. Concerning the ESR dating of optically bleached quartz grains, the use of the multiple centre approach seems crucial when dating such fluvial and fluvio-lacustrine sediments. Our results also confirm the great potential of the Ti-H centre to date late Middle Pleistocene deposits. Despite some (expected) discrepancies related to the independent use of parameters and approaches by the different teams involved in this multi-laboratory study, the whole ESR and ESR/U-series data set collected from Tourville-la-Rivière locality consistently correlates stratigraphic levels D1 to I and associated human occupation to MIS7. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents new archaeological material and first dates on Upper Pleistocene layers at the site of La Crouzade cave (Gruissan, Aude, France). The site was first excavated by T. and P. Héléna at the beginning of the twentieth century, and the excavations were recently completed during three years (2016–2018) of systematic campaigns. We obtained dates from Middle Palaeolithic layers using two methods: AMS 14C dates were obtained from bone and charcoal, and combined ESR-U series dating was undertaken on horse teeth. Together, these methods allowed us to date this Mousterian sequence to 49,776–44805 cal BP for the deepest level (layer C8) and from 42,000 ± 3000 years BP for the top (layer C6). The Upper Palaeolithic layers are preserved only as patches in the actual excavation area, but a date was obtained from a piece of charcoal collected from a small hearth preserved in the first layer (C5) above Middle Palaeolithic deposits, which indicates an age similar to that of a modern human maxillary previously analysed and re-dated here from 36,014 to 34402 cal BP, confirming its stratigraphic attribution. The Middle Palaeolithic lithics at the site were first described as para-Charentian cultural facies following typological analyses. The revision of the earlier collection supplemented with the new material, using a technological approach, allow to identify two layers dominated by Levallois production followed by discoid production (Layers C8 and C6) surrounding an original assemblage (layer C7), characterised by a dominant Levallois production completed by three secondary production systems of equal importance, including discoid, SSDA and a Quina-like production. The faunal spectrum predominantly comprises an assemblage of Pleistocene large mammals, and biochronological studies corroborate the dates obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biochronology is the most widely used method for organizing the successions of continental vertebrate faunas in geological time and for allowing the correlation of continental deposits. However, due to the fragmentary nature of the paleontological record and the diachronicity of first and last occurrences of vertebrate taxa in different areas (i.e., bioevents), it is difficult to precisely define the temporal boundaries between biochronological units. That is why it is crucial to calibrate biochronological data with independent proxies wherever possible. Here, thanks to an interdisciplinary approach that combines sedimentology and stratigraphy, vertebrate paleontology, micropaleontology (ostracods), palynology, and geochronology, we provide a chronological framework and a paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the paleontological site of Pantalla (Central Italy). The combination between biochronological/biostratigraphic and geochronological (U-series/ESR dating and paleomagnetism) data allows us to refer the site to c. 2.2 Ma, i.e., in the transition phase between the Middle and Late Villafranchian in the European biochronological scheme. We reconstruct the environment as a fluvial area with a frequently flooded wet floodplain and marked (probably seasonal) variations of the water level of the channel river. The depositional system was surrounded by a conifer-dominated forest, which is suggestive of a glacial phase. • Pantalla is a paleontological site yielding well-preserved terrestrial mammals. • Geological and paleontological data are combined in an interdisciplinary approach. • A chronological and paleoenvironmental framework of Pantalla is provided. • Age of the site (c. 2.2 Ma) is close to the Middle-Late Villafranchian transition. • The environment was a fluvial area with a frequently flooded wet floodplain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Longgupo cave, located in Chongqing Municipality, China, was discovered in 1984. Sixteen Gigantopithecus teeth and two hominid fossils accompanied with abundant mammalian fossils and stone artifacts were unearthed from the site. Previous dating result is questioned because of the complexity of deposition history. In this study, seventeen mammalian fossil teeth collected from different layers of unit C II and C III (C III′) during the 2003–2006 Sino-Franco joint excavation were analyzed by combined ESR and U-series methods, and calculated with a US-ESR model. In situ dose rates were remeasured in detail in 2012, in order to refine the external dose rate determination. Uranium-series analyses indicate that no obvious uranium leaching has occurred, and all the teeth underwent a very recent uranium uptake history, except one from layer C III 3 of the south wall. The US-ESR results show that the ages of ten teeth from unit C III′ of the north wall are consistent in general, about 2.35 Ma. The ages of seven samples from south wall are not in accordance with the stratigraphic order: three teeth are much younger than the other four, probably attributed to the relative higher uranium concentration and U/Th ratio in the dental tissues and significant higher in situ gamma dose rate. Nevertheless, the three teeth from C III of the south wall give an average age of ∼ 2.48 Ma. The fossil ages obtained in this work combined with paleontological evidence and new paleomagnetic results place Longgupo at the very beginning of the Early Pleistocene. Compared with other early hominid settlements, Longgupo is one of the earliest evidences of hominid settlement in China and East Asia to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ESR dating was applied to fossil teeth and optically bleached quartz grain samples from two units of the sequence at Vallparadís (Barcelona, Spain): weighted mean ESR age estimates of 858 ± 87 ka and 849 ± 48 ka were obtained for EVT-7, which includes the archaeological level 10, and EVT-8, respectively. These results are in good agreement with the existing magneto-biostratigraphic framework that constrain these deposits between 780 and 990 ka, and indicate that Vallparadís EVT-7 has a chronology very close to that of Atapuerca Gran Dolina TD-6 (Spain). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Because only a few radiometric data are actually available, the chronology of the Amudian – a blade-dominated industry of the Acheulo-Yabrudian Cultural Complex (AYCC) of the late Lower Paleolithic in the Levant – is still not well constrained. Qesem Cave offers the opportunity to enhance our knowledge of the chronological position of this industry which is unique to the Levant. The Qesem Amudian bearing layers yielded also human remains showing affinities with those of modern populations recovered in the Middle Paleolithic sites of Skhul and Qafzeh. The results presented here are the first attempt to apply the TL and ESR/U-series dating methods at this site and these methods yielded results which are generally in agreement. They support a time interval of hominid-bearing occupation of the areas of the cave where Amudian lithic artifacts were recovered during MIS 8 and likely 9 for the Deep Pit Area, and during MIS 8 and possibly 7 for the Upper part of the sequence (Square K/10 and the Eastern Microfauna-Bearing Area). An older occupation of the cave is also conceivable on the base of two dating results (MIS 11). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]