The significance of Shuidonggou Locality 12 to studies of hunter-gatherer adaptive strategies in North China during the Late Pleistocene

Abstract

The effect of rapid climate change during the Late Upper Paleolithic on hunter-gatherers is attested by a variety of signals in the archaeological record. One of these, the spread of the microblade technology in North China, shows a particularly close relationship with climate change. The appearance of microblades and functionally related bone and ground stone technology at SDG12 is particularly revealing of this Late Pleistocene adaptive diversification in North China. SDG12 and other records suggest that microblade technology flourished in harsh environments that demanded high residential mobility. That in addition to their use in hunting weaponry, microblades were used in manufacturing the sophisticated cold weather clothing required for winter mobility, is shown by the presence of bone needles and a bone knife handle slotted to accept microblades. The SDG12 fauna and ground stone indicate an attendant shift from a more large game dominated, to a more plant and small game dominated diet that included net hunting and demanded a variety of production tasks that included net-making (spinning) and extensive stone boiling to maximize nutrient returns and as a step in manufacturing. We suspect these changes are the root cause of subsequent changes in social structure.