Phytoliths, pollen, and spores in a stratigraphic sequence from the Shishan Wetland (Azraq Basin, Jordan) and supported by modern pollen and phytolith data provide information on vegetation, climatic trends, and the influence of fire through MIS 2 and MIS 1. Additionally, a pilot study introduces an innovative approach that uses shape and morphometric parameters of Bulliform phytoliths to assess hydro-climatic changes. The phytolith terrestrial–aquatic ratio, grass–pollen size, and the Artemisia–Amaranthaceae ratio (A:C) indicate that during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), the study area was a wetland surrounded by steppe, and that during the deglaciation period (c. 20–11 ka), the wetland vegetation remained almost unchanged but the surrounding area tended to aridity. The phytoliths’ terrestrial ratio, the presence of C4 grass phytoliths, and the low A:C is characterized by a reduced wetland and the establishment of a hot desert, like the present. The record at Shishan Marsh shows effective moisture trends concurrent with other records in the western southern Levant, but climatic events (Heinrich Stadial 1 and Younger Dryas) are not recorded because of the low time-resolution of the studied sequence. This study shows that combining pollen and phytoliths strengthens vegetation reconstruction by discerning local from regional floristic components and that Bulliform phytoliths are a potential tool to reconstruct hydro-climatic conditions.

Archaeological field research in South African archaeology has been dominated by rock shelters. While rock shelters provide the advantage of a defined area of investigation and more limited processes of erosion and sediment accumulation, they only capture part of the archaeological, environmental and landscape records. More of the record can be found in open-air sites; however, these require a different methodological approach within which geophysical techniques can be used to provide information on the stratigraphy of a site and identify possible subsurface archaeological anomalies, potentially reducing uncertainty and time-and-labour costs associated with traditional survey and excavation techniques. This study uses two geophysical methods, electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and magnetometry, to further understand the stratigraphy and archaeology of Klein Hoek 1, an open-air site located adjacent to the Doring River in South Africa. This site contains one of the most important collections of bifacial points in southern Africa, which is a key region for understanding the emergence of behaviourally modern humans. The results of the ERT survey demonstrate that the stratigraphic unit from which the cluster of bifacial points protrudes extends throughout the subsurface of the site and is at least 8 m thick. The magnetometry survey reveals evidence of possible hearth anomalies within the subsurface, which are interpreted as areas of archaeological potential due to a correlation between the cluster of bifacial points and prehistoric burning. The results of this survey demonstrate that geophysical methods can be effective components of archaeological investigations in a southern African open-air context.

Grassridge Rock Shelter in the Eastern Cape presents an important opportunity for understanding social networks and mobility among Pleistocene and Holocene inhabitants of the interior of southern Africa. Pulsed occupations at the site span the Late Pleistocene through mid-Holocene and provide insight into human behaviour during periods of significant climatic change in the region. In this study, we report on the large mammal remains from the Terminal Pleistocene (c. 13.5-11.6 ka) and mid-Holocene (c. 7.3-6.7 ka) occupations recovered from the 2014-2016 excavation seasons. The range of ungulate taxa indicates that the environment surrounding the site was predominantly grassland interspersed with woodland thickets during both the Terminal Pleistocene and mid-Holocene. The results show no significant changes in the proportions of browsers, grazers and mixed feeders over time. The abundance of water-dependant ungulates such as reedbuck suggests the presence of a reliable water source near the site. Covarying proportions of small mammals and tortoises from the Late Pleistocene to the Holocene hint at changes in subsistence patterns over time. We also report on a possible extinct Megalotragus (giant wildebeest) specimen recovered from the Holocene layers. Overall, faunal and archaeological evidence from Grassridge Rock Shelter points to the periodic use of the site possibly linked to seasonal occupations.

Archaeological ostrich eggshell (OES) bead assemblages manifest in a variety of colours that result from exposure to high temperatures. It is unclear, however, whether this colouration is taphonomic, through post-depositional heat exposure, or the consequence of intentional heat treatment of OES to produce a desired colour (or for some related purpose). In this study, we investigate the latter question using controlled and actualistic heating techniques to determine (1) if OES beads remain usable following exposure to high temperatures and (2) whether abrasive wear that occurs prior to heat treatment can be distinguished from wear that occurs after heat exposure. Twelve sets of 20 OES beads were manufactured and subject to one of two investigative tracks. Track 1 simulated abrasive wear using a rock tumbler before heat treatment in either a muffle furnace or wood-burning fire. Track 2 beads were heat treated prior to abrasion. The results demonstrate that indirect exposure to a wood-burning fire generates sufficient heat to produce most colours known in archaeological OES assemblages, although controlling the fire to produce a desired colour is difficult. Beads exposed to high temperatures (≥ 550 °C) become extremely thin and fragile. In a furnace, abrasive wear that occurred prior to heat treatment was distinguishable from wear that occurred after heat treatment, but this distinction is less clear in beads heated in the fire. From these observations, we suggest that coloured OES and OES bead assemblages are more likely the result of unintentional post-depositional processes than deliberate anthropogenic heat treatment.

At the Azraq Oasis, located in the Eastern Desert of Jordan, late Middle to early Late Pleistocene wetland deposits contain abundant Lower Palaeolithic stone tools and faunal remains. Focusing on the southern portion of the Azraq Oasis, known as the Shishan Marsh, this study aims to establish the palaeoecological context of this palaeowetland and associated hominin occupations (c. 300-120 ka) using phytoliths and other biogenic silica microfossils. Phytoliths, diatoms, and sponge spicules were extracted from 24 bulk sediment samples from seven stratigraphic profiles across the Shishan Marsh, as well as from three surface sediment samples collected from the Azraq Wetland Reserve and Shaumari Wildlife Reserve. The results indicate that a shallow waterbody existed across the Shishan Marsh during the late Middle Pleistocene, which underwent drying and marsh development due to increasing regional aridity across Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 8-6. The extensive marsh and associated grassland environment that existed across the Middle to Late Pleistocene transition represented an attractive and resource-rich habitat for fauna and hominins in an otherwise desert region, seemingly acting as a desert refugium during this time.

The Azraq oasis in the Eastern Desert of Jordan has produced considerable stone artefacts attributed to the early Palaeolithic, yet relatively few data are available regarding the chronology and palaeoenvironmental contexts of the remains. In this study, we present stratigraphic, sedimentological, and micropalaeontological analyses of the Late Acheulean site SM1 located within the former Shishan Marsh, which we combine with geochronological and sedimentological data from 13 neighbouring geological exposures to reconstruct landscape evolution at the western margin of the Shishan Marsh. We then discuss the Late Quaternary palaeolandscapes of the Greater Azraq Oasis Area over the past c. 350 ka. Our work demonstrates that the central Azraq Basin experienced three local wetting-drying cycles since the late Middle Pleistocene that would have dramatically shifted the quantity and distribution of freshwater resources , ranging from expansive wetland landscapes to desert refugia characterised by isolated spring pools—changes that would have significantly impacted the mobility decisions and settlement patterns of Palaeolithic inhabitants. Our study highlights that developing long-term records of human-environment dynamics in arid environments requires a mosaic approach to palaeoenvironmental reconstruction that is nested within a well-developed understanding of landscape evolution.

Wadi Zarqa Ma’in 1 (WZM-1) is a natural faunal trap sinkhole ten kilometers southwest of the city of Madaba in Jordan, near the Dead Sea. The limestone karst feature measures over thirty meters in maximum depth and is a significant regional source of faunal, microbotanical, and sedimentological data recording climate change and paleoecology. A new method of sampling was tested during summer 2019 involving the use of a backpacksized Shaw Portable Core Drill that allowed a narrow-bore sampling through the mixed fine sediment and boulder matrix. The maximum depth reached below surface through a combination of test pitting and coring was 8.8 m. Multiple locations could be sampled for radiocarbon analysis, and the deepest (7.85 m) sample yielded a calibrated date of 3644–3382 BCE.

In the Azraq Basin of eastern Jordan, dramatic landscape changes from wetlands to desert resulted in major shifts in settlement and land use over time. Palaeoenvironmental research here suggests that, like today, water availability was a crucial factor for past populations. Recent work at Kharaneh IV (19.8–18.6 kya) indicates settlement of this aggregation site around the end of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 26.5–19 kya) and abandonment by the start of a second drying period, Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1; 18–15.5 kya). In contrast to regional narratives that associate aggregation and "settling in" during the Epipalaeolithic (23–11.6 kya) with phases of climatic amelioration, intensively occupied sites in eastern Jordan during this time are associated with increased rates of evaporation and shrinking wetlands. Ongoing drying, however, led the occupants of Kharaneh IV to reconsider their use of this locale, and aggregation sites soon disappear entirely from the region, perhaps signalling the abandonment of the very practice of aggregation as a socioecological strategy. The subsequent occupation of the Azraq Basin at the end of the Pleistocene and into the Holocene was strongly influenced by fluctuations in water availability in this newly aridifying landscape. Past occupants experienced similar situations to modern-day inhabitants of this area, where water is an increasingly dwindling resource and continues to shape how people engage with the landscape.

Outdoor crime scene documentation needs to be accurate and precise to preserve evidence. Photogrammetry is a potential option. Structure from Motion (SfM) processes photographs into 3D models. As commercial software does not disclose this process, this documentation technique could be legally inappropriate. A potential solution to this problem is open-source software. A series of mock outdoor crime scenes were documented using SfM and total station mapping. Ten large surface scatter scenes containing plastic human remains and personal objects were laid out in 10 × 10 m units in a New England forested environment. The small surface scatter scenes consisted of a pig (Sus scrofa) mandible placed in different environments. The resulting models were built using PhotoScan by AgiSoft and MicMac by IGN. Accuracy was measured by the amount of variance in fixed-datum measurements, whereas visual qualitywas determined by comparison. The average total variance in fixed-datum lengths for six of the ten scenes was below 0.635 cm. The maximum differences in measurement between the total station and software measurements were 0.0917 m (PhotoScan) and 0.178 m (MicMac). Comparative histograms had low standard deviations and mean distances between points. Conditions such as light, ground foliage and topography affect model quality. This research shows that SfM has the potential to be a rapid, accurate and low-cost resource, but there are limitations that must be considered.

Much of the archaeological record in southern Africa occurs as open-air surface scatters of flaked stone artefacts. While historically prominent, these surface artefacts now play a very limited role in reconstructing human behaviour during the Middle and Later Stone Ages. Given suitable caveats, typologies allow links to be developed between open-air surface scatters and temporally controlled excavated samples, the latter often recovered from rock shelters. Among the limitations of this approach are the incomplete rock shelter record for developing type seriations, and the fact that technological behaviours may vary across a landscape, restricting the inferential capacity of assemblages from specific contexts. In this article, we describe four persistent core forms identified during surveys of the Doring River, and attempt to situate them in the regional archaeological sequence using previously excavated samples and intra-site spatial coherence with known culture-historical entities. Our results provide plausible core type markers for the Later Middle Stone Age and Still Bay in the region, and also fill out aspects of artefact transport in a regional technological system that have previously been masked by a site-based approach.

Ostrich eggshell and gastropod shell beads provide important evidence for understanding how past peoples decorated and cultured their bodies and may also be used as proxy evidence for interpreting the nature and extent of past social networks. This study focuses on the ostrich eggshell and gastropod shell bead assemblages from the terminal Pleistocene (~ 13.5 to 11.6 ka) and mid-Holocene (~ 7.3 to 6.7 ka) occupations from Grassridge Rockshelter, South Africa. We present results from a multi-method approach to understanding bead manufacture and use that combines a technological analysis of the bead assemblages with Raman spectroscopy. Raman spectroscopy analyses were conducted on surface residues identified on the beads, ochre pieces, a grooved stone, and sediment samples, and provide further insight into past behaviours and taphonomy, as well as modern contaminants. Results indicate that ostrich eggshell beads were manufactured at Grassridge during both occupations, and that bead size changed through time. Use-wear and residue analyses demonstrate the complex taphonomy associated with bead studies from archaeological contexts, and the need for further taphonomic research. These analyses also suggest that some ostrich eggshell and Nassarius beads were potentially worn against ochred surfaces, such as skin or hide, as evidenced by the amount and location of the ochreous residues identified on the beads.

Open-air sites in arid and semi-arid landscapes are often subject to prolonged periods of exposure and episodes of erosion that can lead to the redistribution of artefacts and the loss of behaviorally significant spatial information. This is true along the Doring River, South Africa, where archaeologically rich sediment stacks with records exceeding 200,000 years are undergoing rapid erosion in response to modern climatic conditions and land use practices. This paper evaluates the impacts of past and future erosion on the disaggregation of artefacts from these open-air sites and the resulting loss of stratigraphic context and behaviorally significant spatial information. We use low elevation aerial images of the Klein Hoek 1 locality captured by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to develop a high-resolution local digital terrain model (DTM), which we use to model surface flow paths and quantify the potential for future sediment loss using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). We compare the results of these analyses to the distribution of artefacts of different ages to assess artefact dispersion and to guide future research priorities at the locality. We find that some artefact clusters retain significant spatial integrity, whereas others are dispersed and likely out of primary context. The results also indicate that the geomorphic stability of a large part of Klein Hoek 1 has been compromised by erosion, with limited prospects for long-term survival given the present climate and land use practices.

This article discusses the development and implementation of a mobile GIS catch-and-release system for documenting large surface artifact scatters along the Doring River in South Africa. An integrated, cloud-based mobile GIS solution was built using a suite of ESRI ArcGIS applications with an aim to maximize the speed and breadth of techno-typological data capture, while minimizing data collection errors and post-processing requirements. The system was successfully implemented during the 2019 field season of the Doring River Archaeological Project. With the ability for project-specific customization and interchangeable hardware components, the system transcends geographic region and temporal focus. Moreover, the system accommodates connectivity limitations commonly faced by archaeologists seeking distributed database solutions. Other challenges embraced in the design include rotating personnel throughout a field season, scalability without large financial investment, and the ability to accommodate data collection needs of other components of the larger multi-disciplinary research project.

Recent excavations at the site of Shishan Marsh 1 in the Azraq basin, Jordan have uncovered several artifactbearing layers that date within the Middle (266 +/- 40 kya) and Late (125 +/- 12 kya) Pleistocene. A paleoecological assessment of sediments from this period indicates predominantly warm and dry conditions in the region, similar to those of the present. Hominins living under these hot and dry conditions contracted around a receding spring- and wadi-fed water source for subsistence. As such, they were limited to the distances they could venture to acquire raw material resources. Consequently, Shishan Marsh 1 presents an opportunity to investigate lithic procurement strategies practiced by Paleolithic hominins in an arid environment. This paper presents the preliminary results of an on-going provenance study of lithic sources in the region and a sample of chert artifacts using LA-ICP-MS. The preliminary results indicate that predominantly local procurement was practiced. However, some artifacts were geochemically more consistent with distant sources and still others did not correlate with any sampled source. This latter group indicates that more sources need to be included, as there is greater variability within the Azraq basin than what is documented in this study.