New lithic evidence from Terminal Pleistocene-Early Holocene Zhongshan Rockshelter, Guangxi, southern China

Abstract

The archaeological materials recovered during the 2018 excavation of Zhongshan Rockshelter (ZSRS) in Bubing Basin, Guangxi, southern China helps to fill a cultural gap during the terminal Paleolithic in the region. The evidence from the ZSRS, dated to ∼14,523–8,472 cal. BP, is comparable to other parts of southern China and mainland Southeast Asia where grinding techniques, complex settlement patterns and broad-spectrum subsistence strategies appeared. What distinguishes the ZSRS from other sites in the region however is the widespread use of flaked stone tools and ochre utilization, but with an absence of pottery. This is an excellent example of variation in foraging behavior in this spatio-temporal facies, where one size does not fit all. Regional differences suggest a more complex human foraging strategy rather than a single and fixed behavioral model across southern China during the Terminal Pleistocene to Early Holocene transition.