A discovery at the Longtan archaeological site in southwest China revealed a technological surprise challenging long-held perceptions of Middle Paleolithic toolmaking in East Asia. The site yielded Quina scrapers and related stone tools that are connecting cultural dots between regions that had previously seemed isolated.
The find occurred in an environment similar to that of Quina sites in Europe and included artifacts dated to approximately 50,000 to 60,000 years ago. These artifacts include a complete Quina technological system that supports the presence of Middle Paleolithic technologies in East Asia.
The discovery of Quina scrapers, traditionally found in southern France, along with Levallois tools recently discovered in Guanyindong Cave in China, questions the outdated notion that East Asia's toolmaking history remained stagnant for millennia. New research disputes the belief that the Middle Paleolithic was a static period in this region, as many researchers have previously suggested that ancient East Asians did not experience this period.
The Longtan finds represent the first definitive East Asian examples of Quina scrapers and cores, with 53 Quina scrapers among 3,487 stone artifacts excavated in 2019 and 2020. These stone tools, marked by their thick and asymmetrical form with a sharp working edge, have typically been associated with European and Middle Eastern sites. European archaeologists believe that Quina scrapers were crafted for mobile hunters in cool, dry climates.
Researchers used optical luminescence dating to determine that the layers containing the artifacts date back 50,000 to 60,000 years. While the Longtan excavations did not yield any human bones or DNA, the possibility of modern humans, Neanderthals, or even Denisovans being the toolmakers remains open.
“Versatile, reusable Quina tools greatly assisted mobile groups,” said Davide Delpiano of the University of Ferrara, who contributed to comparing the European and Chinese specimens, according to Science News. He suspects that under pressure from increasingly cold and harsh environments, Denisovans or possibly undiscovered hominids in Asia devised Quina tools independently.
Bo Li from the University of Wollongong also participated in dating the artifacts, providing crucial evidence supporting their ancient origin, Live Science reported. While the evidence points to potential cultural transmission over large distances or remarkable evolutionary convergence, the precise origins remain a subject of ongoing investigation.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.
