Reconnaissance of Paleolithic sites yielding mammalian remains and tephonomy

Research Project

Project/Area Number	07459015
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Section	一般
Research Field	広領域
Research Institution	Okayama University
Principal Investigator	INADA Takashi Okayama Univ.Fac.of Letters, 文学部, 教授 (40135926)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	KAWAMURA Yoshinari Aichi Univ.of Education, Fac., of Education, 教育学部, 助教授 (00135394)
Project Period (FY)	1995 – 1997
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 1997)
Budget Amount *help	¥3,100,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,100,000) Fiscal Year 1997: ¥1,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,300,000) Fiscal Year 1996: ¥1,800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,800,000)
Keywords	mammalian fossil / Paleolithic / Pleistocene / taphonomy
Research Abstract	Excavation and reconnaissance of cave sedimets in Karst areas We excavated the cave sediments of NT Cave and Komori-ana Cave in Niimi, Okayama Prefecture. NT Cave is small vertical cave with a diameter of about 1m, which is filled with fossiliferous sediments. Our excavations to the depth of 4.5m have revealed that the sediments are unstratified mud with limestone breccia which contain a large number of mammalian remains including large wild boar (Sus cf.lydekkeri), larger deer (Cervus sp.) and smaller deer (Hydropotes cf.inermis). This fossil assemblage is very important from paleontological view points, because it possesses the characters of the middle Middle Pleistocene fauna which is poorly known in Japan, and is the oldest among the faunas of caves and fissures in Japan. In Komori-anan Cave, we carried out a topographic mapping and a tentative excavation. Research and reconnaissance of fossil-bearing aqueous sediments Oru field survey on the riverbed of Hatahoko River in Ashibe, Iki-gun, Nagasaki Prefecture, revealed that molars and bone fragments of elephant occurred from semi-consolidated gravel bed, newly named the Hatahokogawa Formation, which intercalated a thin tephra bed. Wood fragments from the formaiton are dated as about 40kyr.B.P.by ^<14>C method. The bone fragments were scattered on the riverbed with lengths of a few hundred meters. This mode of occurrence is very interesting from taphonomic viewpoints. Additionally, we carried out field survey or reconnaissance at many fossil localities and archaeological sites in Kyushu, Honshu and Hokkaido including Himeshima Island of Oita Prefecture, Tonogori of Miyazaki Prefecture nd Sahama of Shizuoka Prefecture. At these localities and sites, we examined mammalian fossils (mainly elephants) and artifacts of Paleolithic age.