Acta Anthropologica Sinica ›› 1987, Vol. 6 ›› Issue (01): 55-60.

Previous Articles     Next Articles

On the new materials of paleoliths from the Hanshui Valley

Tang Yingjun, Zong Guanfu, Lei Yulu   

  • Online:1987-03-15 Published:1987-03-15

Abstract: A lot of new materials of Paleoliths from over 10 localities in Hanzhong basin have been found recently since the first materials were reported in 1980. The present paper is a preliminary study of the Paleoliths and the stratigraphic section of the localities (containing Wenquan, Chituling, Yangjiawan, Hujiadu of Mianxian; Longgansi of Nanzheng; Chengdingcun, Diheba of Chenggu; Dabagou, Yangzheng, Jinshui, Balong of Yangxian) . The new materials were collected by a fieid team of IVPP and Geological Museum of Shaanxi Province in the autumn 1985.
The materials of 200 Paleoliths are mostly made of vein quartz, quartzite, pyrolith and quartz sandstone. The stone assemblage consists of bolas, chopper-chopping tool, points, scrapers. They are very like those from Lantian, Sanmen gorge, Dingchun of North China and Baise, Guanyindong of South China typologically.
The Paleolithic artifacts mentioned above were found in the sediments of the third terrace consisted of the yellow-reddish sandy clay with concretion and some mammalian fossils including Ailuropoda melanoleuca, Ursus sp. , Stegodon orientalis, Rhinoceros sinensis, Sus sp. , Muntiacus muntiak, Rusa sp. , Gazella sp. , Bubalus sp. etc. were found in it. The fossils associated with the Paleoliths belong to the Ailuropoda-Stegodon fauna, so that, the Paleolithic age can be attributed to Middle Pleistocene.

Key words: Shaanxi Hanshui; Paleoliths; Middle Pleistocene