ESR chronology of the Sankeshu Paleolithic site in the Nihewan Basin, North China

doi:10.16359/j.cnki.cn11-1963/q.2020.0081

Abstract

Abstract:

The Nihewan Basin has attracted much attention owing to its well-developed late Mesozoic lacustrine strata and abundant Paleolithic sites and mammalian fossils. More than 100 Paleolithic sites have been found in the basin, which is known in academic circles as the “Olduvai canyon of the East”. Suitable dating materials are lacking; therefore, few independent ages are associated with Middle Pleistocene sites. Sankeshu Paleolithic site is one such example. This situation leaves the study of Paleolithic sites without a sound chronological framework. Electron spin resonance (ESR) dating technology is a dating technology developed in 1960s and has been widely recognized in geological circles. The ESR dating method has obvious advantages for the dating of the Middle Pleistocene sites, especially for the 400-780 kaBP which can not be dated by the Luminescence method. In this paper, we use quartz Ti-Li center ESR method to date four sediment samples at different depths of the Sankeshu site. The age of Sankeshu site is 599±70 kaBP, which provides a necessary chronological basis for understanding the survival and evolution of ancient humans in the Nihewan Basin.

Key words: Nihewan Basin, Sankeshu site, Middle Pleistocene, Paleolithic, ESR, Quartz

CLC Number:

K871.11
P533

JI Hao, LIU Chunru, SONG Weijuan, WEI Chuanyi, AO Hong, LI Jianping, YIN Gongming. ESR chronology of the Sankeshu Paleolithic site in the Nihewan Basin, North China[J]. Acta Anthropologica Sinica, 2021, 40(03): 427-435.

Figures/Tables 7

Fig.1 Geographic location of the Sankeshu site of Nihewan Basin

Fig.2 ESR samples location of the Sankeshu site

Fig.3 ESR spectra of natural quartz sample at low temperature (liquid nitrogen, 77K)

Fig.4 Sunlight bleaching characteristics of quartz Al and Ti-Li centers for the SKS-2 sample of the Sankeshu site

Fig.5 Additive dose curves of Al and Ti-Li centers for the four samples (SKS-1、SKS-2、SKS-3 and SKS-4) of the Sankeshu site

Tab.1 Dose rates, equivalent doses of the Al and Ti centers, and age results obtained from the Ti-Li center for four samples of the Sankeshu site

编号 No.	含水量 water content	U (μg/g)	Th (μg/g)	K百分含量 K content	环境剂量率 Dose rate (Gy/ka)	Al心等效剂量Al center D_E (Gy)	Ti-Li心等效剂量 Ti-Li center D_E (Gy)	年龄 Age (ka)
SKS-1	10±5%	2.4±0.3	9.8±0.1	2.25±0.03%	3.03±0.3	1915±120	1816±111	599±37
SKS-2	10±5%	2.8±0.4	11.2±0.1	2.33±0.04%	3.26±0.3	1868±201	1913±189	587±58
SKS-3	10±5%	3.9±0.4	11.9±0.1	2.42±0.04%	3.62±0.4	1939±454	2179±243	602±67
SKS-4	10±5%	3.3±0.4	10.8±0.1	2.25±0.03%	3.28±0.3	1936±282	2012±215	610±65

Fig.6 Age of the Sankeshu site and other known ages of the Middle Pleistocene sites in the Nihewan Basin

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