While the Middle Paleolithic period is viewed as a dynamic time in European and African history, it is commonly considered a static period in East Asia. New research from the University of Washington challenges that perception.
Researchers discovered a complete Quina technological system — a method for making a set of tools connected to European Neanderthals— in the Longtan site in southwest China, which has been dated to about 50,000 to 60,000 years ago. Quina technology was found in Europe decades ago but has never before been found in East Asia, making this truly a landmark discovery.
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The Middle Paleolithic’s Surprising Eastward Migration
The team published its findings March 31 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). In this article, they present what they classify as “compelling evidence of core exploitation, production of large and thick flakes, shaping and maintenance of scrapers exhibiting the whole Quina concept, typical of contemporary European Middle Paleolithic technologies developed by Neanderthal groups.”
While this particular form of toolmaking has been associated with Neanderthals in a European context, that wouldn’t necessarily mean it was brought to the lands of Eastern Asia by that species. Neanderthals and humans interacted in Europe, and technologies could easily be passed back and forth.
Regardless of how the Quina methodology completed its eastward migration, the fact that it did so at all is what is remarkable about this discovery, which brings the Middle Paleolithic to a part of the world that supposedly didn’t experience it.
The Longtan site in southwestern China, where the Quina tools were found. (Ruan, et.al/PNAS)
“This is a big upset to the way we think about that part of the world in that period of time,” said Ben Marwick, co-author and UW professor of archaeology. “It really raises the question of, what else were people doing during this period that we haven’t found yet? How is this going to change how we think about people and human evolution in this area?”
The Middle Paleolithic, or Middle Stone Age, occurred about 300,000 to 40,000 years ago and is considered a crucial time in human evolution. The period is associated with the origin and evolution of modern humans in Africa. In Eurasia, it’s linked to the development of several archaic human groups such as Neanderthals and Denisovans. However, there is a widely held belief that development in China was sluggish during most of the Paleolithic.
The Quina system identified in China has been dated to 55,000 years ago, which is in the same period as European finds. This disputes the idea that the Middle Paleolithic was stagnant in the region and deepens the understanding of Homo sapiens, Denisovans and possibly other hominins that might have been active in Eastern Asia but have yet to be discovered.
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The most distinctive part of the Quina system is the scraper — a stone tool that is typically thick and asymmetrical with a broad and sharp working edge that has clear signs of use and resharpening. Researchers found several of these, as well as the byproducts of their manufacture. Tiny scratches and chips on the tools indicate they were used for scraping and scratching bones, antlers or wood.
Marwick said the question now becomes: how did this toolkit arrive in East Asia? Researchers will work to determine whether there is a direct connection — people moving gradually from west to east — or if the technology was invented independently with no direct contact between groups.
It will help if researchers can find an archaeological site with a deep set of layers, Marwick said, so they can see what tools developed before the appearance of Quina technology.
“We can try to see if they were doing something similar beforehand that Quina seemed to evolve out of,” Marwick said. “Then we might say that development seems to be more local — they were experimenting with different forms in previous generations, and they finally perfected it. Alternatively, if Quina appears without any sign of experimentation, that suggests this was transmitted from another group.”
Map showing distribution of Quina and other toolmaking technologies in Eurasia during the Middle Paleolithic. (Ruan, et.al/PNAS).
Why Did it Take So Long?
There are likely several reasons why Quina technology has just now been found in East Asia. One factor, Marwick said, is that archaeologists working in China are learning more about archaeology in other parts of the world and how to recognize their findings. He said the pace of research is also increasing, which means archaeologists are more likely to find rarer artifacts.
“The idea that nothing has changed for such a long time in East Asia also has a tight grip on people,” Marwick said. “They haven’t been considering the possibility of finding things that challenge that. Now maybe there are some scholars who are interested in questioning those ideas.”
Much of archaeological discovery relies on luck, Marwick said, but one goal for the future is to uncover human remains in the area.
“That could answer the question of whether these tools are the product of a modern human like you and me,” Marwick said. “There have never been any Neanderthals found in East Asia, but could we find a Neanderthal? Or, more likely, could we find a Denisovan, which is another kind of human ancestor? If we can find the human remains associated with this period, we might find something surprising — maybe even a new human ancestor that we don’t know about yet.”
Top image: Set of Quina lithic artifacts unearthed at the site in Longtan, China.
Source: Ben Marwick/University of Washington.
This is an edited version of a press release published by the University of Washington, entitled ‘Discovery of Quina technology challenges view of ancient human development in East Asia.’
