Chauhan 2008 (JHE)

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Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614
Soanian lithic occurrences and raw material exploitation in the Siwalik Frontal Zone, northern India: a geoarchaeological perspective
Parth R. Chauhan
Stone Age Institute & CRAFT Research Center (Indiana University), Bloomington, IN, USA Received 4 October 2006; accepted 18 September 2007
Abstract In the Himalayan foothills of northern India, evidence of widespread hominin occupation since at least the late Middle Pleistocene has been known since the early 20th century and indicates varied patterns of land-use and intraregional mobility. This lithic evidence primarily belongs to the Soanian industry, representing some of the highest concentrations of Paleolithic assemblages in the Old World based exclusively on pebble and cobble clasts. This body of evidence also signies interregional dispersal from peninsular India or northern Pakistan, leading to environmental preferences that spread quickly through hominin populations in the region within a relatively short timespan. While rich in its technological repertoire, the Soanian industry is poorly- understood regarding site selection and raw material exploitation over time. Recent efforts demonstrate that Soanian sites on Siwalik frontal slopes between two major rivers vary considerably in their artifact quantities regardless of abundant raw material sources found across the landscape. Most of the assemblages suggest raw material transport distances of three kilometers or less from the localized sources. Geoarchaeological investigations at the richest known Soanian site, Toka, reveal dynamic evidence of pre- and postdepositional site formation including the exploitation of quartzite pebbles and cobbles by Pleistocene hominins from terrace and streambed contexts within a 1 km2 radius. Some eld observations also disprove claims made by previous workers, of artifacts eroding out of late Pliocene exposures of the Upper Siwalik Tatrot Formation around Toka. 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Siwalik frontal slopes; Post-Siwalik; Soanian paleolithic sites; Geoarchaeology
Introduction Lithic assemblages produced on uvially-rounded clasts generally occur in most phases of the prehistoric period on a global scale, highlighting their unique technofunctional expediency and dependence on specic geomorphological and environmental settings (e.g., Clark and Schick, 1988; Tieu, 1991; Roebroeks, 2001; Stout et al., 2005; Chauhan, in press). Such toolkits were so dominant in some regions of the Old World that they subsequently came to be referred to as ChopperChopping Tool or Pebble Tool traditions (Movius, 1948). In most cases, such assemblages simply represented a preference
E-mail address: pchauhan@indiana.edu 0047-2484/$ - see front matter 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2007.09.017
for uvially-transported clasts such as pebbles, cobbles, and boulders, indicating the exploitation of areas near water sources or paleochannel gravel/conglomerate deposits. One of these regions in the Old World where such assemblages are geographically prominent is the Siwalik Hills or Himalayan foothills of the Indian subcontinent. The Indian subcontinent, or South Asia, contains a continuous prehistoric archaeological record dating back to, at least, the early Middle Pleistocene (Sankalia, 1974; Mishra, 1994; Petraglia, 2001). Older archaeological occurrences, from the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene, have also been reported from northern Pakistan and peninsular India, respectively (Paddayya et al., 2002; Dennell, 2004); these, however, need further corroboration. South Asian Lower Paleolithic assemblages have generally been assigned to either the Acheulian (Mode 2) or Soanian (now known to comprise both Modes 1 and 3) traditions (Misra, 1987, 2001). The Mode 1 assemblages
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are less well known and occur in the form of middle and upper Pleistocene sites and off-sites throughout the Indian subcontinent (e.g., Jayaswal, 1982; Ota, 1982e83; Sharma and Roy, 1985; Singh and Singh, 1990; Singh and Sengupta, 1991; Behera, 1992; Reddy et al., 1995; Singh, 1997; Rajendran, 1998e99; Sharma, 2002). Given the usually small data samples and single-site contexts, it is difcult to recognize any Early Pleistocene Mode 1 technoculture sensu stricto, such as the Oldowan and Clactonian, in peninsular India, despite previous claims of a Mode 1 to-Mode 2 transition (Khatri, 1961, 1962; Armand, 1985); these claims remain unsubstantiated (Supekar, 1985). Nonbifacial assemblages in South Asia were often assigned regional industrial names on the basis of differences in tool-type frequencies, tool size, degree of retouch, and so forth (Jayaswal, 1982). The most prominent nonbifacial technocomplex is represented by the Soanian industry, found throughout the Siwalik region in Pakistan, India, and Nepal; however, Corvinus (2002) does not classify some of the Nepali assemblages as being Soanian. Soanian artifacts
were manufactured on quartzite pebbles, cobbles, and occasionally on boulders, all derived from various uvial sources on the Siwalik landscape. Soanian assemblages generally comprise varieties of choppers, discoids, scrapers, cores, and numerous ake types (Fig. 1), all occurring in varying typotechnological frequencies at individual sites (see Paterson and Drummond, 1962; Corvinus, 2002; Chauhan, 2007). Despite this typological diversity, such attributes as bifacial reduction, acortical nished tools, extensive platform preparation (i.e., facetted platforms), and plan form and lateral symmetry are absent within the Soanian. The closest morphological parallels to this industry outside of South Asia are found in the neighboring regions of Tajikistan and Iran (see Davis, 1984, 1986), all of which vary considerably in age. As expected with rounded-clast exploitation, the Soanian also shares broad morphological features and reduction properties with the Oldowan as well as with younger nonbiface assemblages. The differences between these assemblages are signicant: for instance, the Soanian does not comprise any classic Oldowan
Fig. 1. Diverse Soanian tool-types from Toka: a) uniface; b) hammerstone; c) unifacial and unimarginal chopper; d) secondary ake; e) single-platform core on split-cobble; f) core scrapers; g) nonconvergent unifacial discoid; h) pointed unifacial chopper; i) ake with cortical platform; and j) angular core fragment. Specimens a and h resemble bifaces in outline but are actually unifaces.
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tool-types such as polyhedrons, subspheroids, and spheroids. As demonstrated later in this paper, the majority of the Soanian evidence appears to be partly contemporaneous with the South Asian (Late) Acheulian evidence but mostly postdates it. Excluding some localities in the Soan Valley of Pakistan, the site complex of Guler (Beas Valley) and Toka (this study) in India, and the Arjun-3 site in Nepal, Soanian and similar assemblages rarely comprise more than a few dozen artifacts. Most occur in nondatable surface contexts and may be classiable as off-sites (Foley, 1981) or non-sites (Dunnell and Dancey, 1983), with stray artifacts strewn randomly across Siwalik landscapes (e.g., Pande, 1968; Bhattacharya and Chakrabarti, 1981). Although this limits our understanding of such aspects as occupational chronology, associated technological development over time, and intrasite spatial patterning, other information can, nevertheless, be extracted regarding broad land-use patterns such as raw material exploitation, site selection, and site formation. In other words, the value of lithic surface scatters (e.g., Jacobson, 1985; Biagi and Cremaschi, 1988; Ebert, 1992; Hurcombe, 2004) should not be overlooked since most of our knowledge of Siwalik prehistory comes from that context. Indeed, it has even been successfully demonstrated that artifact surface scatters are viable sources for reconstructing patterns of land-use (e.g., Sullivan, 1992), despite the often low artifact quantities. In India, site formation studies were adopted fairly recently and have provided new insights on the regional Paleolithic record (e.g., Jacobson, 1985; Jhaldiyal, 1998; Pappu, 2001a; also see Petraglia, 2002). This paper addresses land-use patterns by describing and interpreting the distribution of Soanian lithic scatters on Siwalik frontal slopes between two major rivers in northern India. Following the discovery of a rich Paleolithic site complex at Toka in January 2001, it was anticipated that additional rich scatters may also be recovered at analogous locationsdnear raw material sources where streams, often with prominent terrace deposits, merged with the plains. To test this hypothesis, the survey involved an examination of post-Siwalik deposits in the frontal slopes of the hills, as well as some interior zones between two major rivers. Newly-discovered surface occurrences were spatially correlated with nearby raw material sources found in uvial context, to understand variances in artifact quantities and possible general distances of clast transport. Finally, basic geological attributes were examined at Toka to hypothesize about site formation processes and re-assess its stratigraphic context in light of Verma and Srivastavas (1984) claims of late Pliocene artifacts eroding out from the Tatrot Formation in this area. The Siwalik Hills and associated raw material sources The Siwalik Hills initially caught the attention of paleontologists when fossil apes of Miocene age were discovered there in the early 1800s (Lukacs, 1984; Jones et al., 1992). As a result, represent one of the best-studied uvial sequences in the world. These molasse deposits span from the Indus River in the west to the Bay of Bengal in the east, a total length of approximately 2400 km. These hills, the Siwalik Foreland Basin
(Kumar et al., 1991, 1994), include uvial sediments deposited by hinterland rivers owing south and northeast-to-southwest from the Lesser and Greater Himalaya (Gill, 1983b), when the region south of these mountains was originally a vast depression or basin (referred to as the foredeep) in the Miocene and Burbank, 2000). These sediments were later up(Brozovic lifted through ongoing tectonic processes that intensied during the Plio-Pleistocene when the hills, as a topogeographical unit, attained their present relative elevation. A modern analog for Siwalik sediment deposition, prior to uplift, is the IndoGangetic plains to the south of the Siwalik Hills (Jain and Sinha, 2003). The range is less than 13 km wide in places with an average of 24 km, and it reaches an elevation between 900 m and 1200 m. The majority of the sediments are located within the political boundaries of Pakistan, India, and Nepal, and become steeper and narrower (in relief and width), from west to east. The most prominent tectonic feature that separates the Siwalik Hills from the Indo-Gangetic plains to the south is known by several names: the Main Frontal Thrust (Nakata, 1989; Lave and Avouac, 2000), the Himalayan Frontal Thrust (Wesnousky et al., 1999; Malik et al., 2003), or Himalayan Frontal Fault system (Nakata, 1972; Kumar et al., 2001; Kumar, 2002). Over time, ongoing erosion and tectonic activity has greatly affected the topography of the Siwaliks, now comprised of hogback ridges, valleys of various orders, gullies, choes (seasonal streams), earth-pillars, rilled earth-buttresses of conglomerate formations, semicircular choe-divides, talus cones, colluvial cones, water-gaps, and choe terraces (Mukerji, 1976a). Associated badland features include predominantly sparse vegetation, steep slopes, high drainage density, and rapid erosion rates (Howard, 1994). Such major topographical and uvial changes, increasingly prevalent since the Plio-Pleistocene, probably had signicant repercussions on hominin settlement behaviors and subsistence strategies. Initially, the Siwalik strata were divided using biostratigraphy, due to the wealth of vertebrate fossil remains frequently found in the ne-grained sediments that were laid down by shallow, braided river channels (Jones et al., 1992; Kennedy and Ciochon, 1999). Later, chronometric dating techniques were applied and gradually rened to achieve accurate chronological control: these include geomagnetic polarity studies and radiometric dating of volcanic ashes, supplemented by isotope analyses (Opdyke et al., 1979; Johnson et al., 1983; Ranga Rao et al., 1988, 1995). All Siwalik sediments have been divided stratigraphically into three subgroups, which in turn are subdivided into eight formations: Kamlial (Lower Siwalik Subgroup); Chinji, Nagri, and Dhok Pathan (Middle Siwalik Subgroup); and Tatrot, Pinjore/Pinjor, and Boulder Conglomerate formations (Upper Siwalik Subgroup). According to Sangode and Kumar (2003), broad age estimates of sedimentation windows for the Upper Siwalik formations are 3.4 to 5.6 Ma for Tatrot, 1.7 to 2.5 Ma for Pinjore, and 0.7 to 1.7 Ma for the Boulder Conglomerate Formation (henceforth BCF). Paleolithic sites on Siwalik slopes are situated on or above sediments belonging to almost all Siwalik formations. Most stratied evidence of hominin occupation, however, is
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found in the Upper Siwalik Pinjore Formation (Dennell et al., 1988; Hurcombe, 2004) and post-Siwalik deposits (e.g., Stiles, 1978), the latter being the primary focus of this paper. The distribution of suitable raw material in the Siwalik region, including the study area, can be essentially viewed from two geographical and chronological perspectives: BCF and postBCF sources. The Boulder Conglomerate Formation (BCF) Although no stratied archaeological evidence has been reported from the BCF, which contains abundant quartzite and sandstone clasts (Gill and Gaur, 1986), it is important to understand its formational history and subsequent geological implications for hominin occupation of the Siwalik region. The BCF is the youngest formation of the entire Siwalik sequence and is essentially divided into upper and lower units, both are noticeably distinct (Johnson et al., 1982). The Upper BCF is much coarser than the Lower BCF and the number of quartzite pebbles is also reduced in the former (Sahni and Khan, 1983). The environment of this deposition involved the formation of distal alluvial fans and proximal-distal braided stream systems, in association with tectonic processes (Kumar and Ghosh, 1991). The BCF horizons are also interbedded with pale brown beds and lenses of clay and silt, indicating a vast and but intermittent network of braided channels (Brozovic Burbank, 2000). Quartzite pebbles, cobbles, and boulders were the dominant forms of raw material available and siliceous or ne-grained material such as chert, chalcedony, and jasper, to name a few, were virtually absent and do not occur naturally in the Siwalik ecozone. Magnetostratigraphic studies show that many Siwalik sediments are regionally time-transgressive including the BCF (Rendell et al., 1987). For example, these Upper Siwalik conglomerates in the Soan Valley are dated to w2 Ma, whereas those in the Pabbi Hills (100 km to the southeast) are dated to w1 Ma (Opdyke et al., 1979) and their deposition ends at approximately 500 ka in Pakistan [although sedimentation may have continued to 400 ka (Keller et al., 1977; Johnson et al., 1979)] and between 600 ka (Ranga Rao et al., 1995) and 200 ka in India (Singh et al., 2001; also see Mohapatra, 1985; see Fig. 2 in Gaillard and Mishra, 2001: 79). Older formations were not completely devoid of raw material sources, but these were not as abundant as the BCF and post-Siwalik exposures (Chauhan, 2005a; Dennell, 2007). In northern Pakistan, for example, Dennell and Rendell (1991: 95) mention the association of artifacts with outcrops of quartzite-bearing Middle and Upper Siwalik conglomerates, or with spreads of quartzite pebbles and cobbles derived from these conglomerates (also see Burbank et al., 1988; Kumar and Ghosh, and Burbank, 2000). These early sources of 1991; Brozovic raw material were not geologically common prior to BCF times, and appear to be isolated occurrences rather than laterally extensive components of the landscape. In fact, various exposures of the BCF visible today also did not form a continuous and contemporary landscape during hominin occupation of the region. An important feature of these BCF sources,
Fig. 2. Exposures of the Boulder Conglomerate Formation (BCF) near the Markanda River.
however, is that once deposited, they represented a relatively stable and long-term source of raw material and, at places, resulted in the subsequent post-Siwalik uvial distribution of associated clasts elsewhere on the landscape. Post-BCF or post-Siwalik sources The period following the deposition of the BCF, is chronologically referred to as post-Siwalik (Mukerji, 1979), when antecedent Siwalik uvial courses were altered. In northern Pakistan and western Kashmir, this post-Siwalik time is marked by thick loess deposits (Agrawal, 1992). In India and Nepal, this loess is substituted by contemporaneous features including intermontane valleys (duns) and associated uvial deposits. In Pakistan, post-Siwalik times began as early as 1.6 Ma ago in the Soan Valley (Rendell et al., 1989), and as late as 500 ka ago in the Pabbi Hills (Dennell, 2004). In India, the commencement of post-Siwalik deposition may be provisionally bracketed between 600 ka and 200 ka (Ranga Rao et al., 1988; Sangode et al., 1996; Sangode and Kumar, 2003). An additional consequence of this post-Siwalik geological activity involved the development of new drainage patterns (Thakur et al., 1997e98), characterized by proximal alluvial fan conditions from southwards to southwest at places (Kumar et al., 2001). These new and altered antecedent drainage systems are represented by numerous streams (locally known as choes, khads, nadis, or nalas) of varying orders that emanate from within the Siwalik Hills and ow semiperpendicular (north-south) to them (Mukerji, 1976a). Their channels are generally formed by the numerous gullies, ravines, hillslopes,
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and faults found in the area and are seasonally supplied by monsoon rains. Ongoing tectonic uplift has resulted in the shifting of these channels and their ow directions (Kumar et al., 2001). These post-Siwalik streams carry ne-grained sediments and variable quantities of sandstone and quartzite clasts, derived from BCF exposures and occasionally older Siwalik formations (Fig. 2). The majority of the Soanian paleolithic evidence is stratigraphically and geographically associated with these post-Siwalik contexts, discussed below. Paleolithic research in the Siwalik region and the age of the Soanian evidence The occurrence of Paleolithic artifacts in the Siwalik region was rst noted by Wadia (1928) and K.R.U. Todd (see Paterson and Drummond, 1962). However, the rst attempt to understand their geoarchaeological signicance was made by de Terra and Paterson (1939). This British-American team was also responsible for assigning labels such as Soan or Soanian (Hawkes et al., 1934; Movius, 1948) and Soan Flake Tradition to some of these lithic assemblages, and for broadly placing their origin in the Middle Pleistocene (see Dennell and Rendell, 1991; Dennell and Hurcombe, 1992). Patersons observations on the terrace sequences of the Soan valley of Pakistan, led him to believe that several technological phases existed within the Soanian (Paterson and Drummond, 1962), and that these were associated with glacial and interglacial periods (see Table 3 in Chauhan, 2007: 26e27). However, the team conducted no excavations and only surface material was selectively collected from the Soanian terraces and various Siwalik surfaces in the Potwar Plateau (de Terra and Paterson, 1939). In Pakistan, subsequent investigations took place in the Soan Valley, the Potwar Plateau, the Pabbi Hills, and the Rohri Hills in the Sind region (Graziosi, 1964; Stiles, 1978; Rendell et al., 1989). In India, most of the investigations took place in the river valleys of Sutlej, Ravi (Saroj, 1974), Markanda (Joshi et al., 1975), Beas-Banganga (or Kangra: Lal, 1956; Bhattacharya et al., 1981), Sirsa, and Soan (not related to the Soan Valley of Pakistan), and in the intermontane dun valleys (Karir, 1985). In Nepal, intensive investigations took place for the rst time only in the last two decades, notably in the Dang and Deokhuri valleys (Corvinus, 1995). Most of the scholars in India (Lal, 1956; Mohapatra, 1981; Karir, 1985) relied heavily on the initial interpretations made in the 1930s by de Terra and Paterson, ultimately resulting in oversimplied and confusing cultural interpretations (see Misra and Mate, 1995). Additional investigators include Johnson (1972) in the Potwar Plateau and Soan Valley; Krantz (1972) in the Soan Valley; the British Archaeological Mission to Pakistan (see Dennell, 2004) in the Soan and Jhelum valleys and the Pabbi Hills; Ganjoo et al. (1993e94) in the Chenab and Tawi valleys; Joshi (1985) in the Beas, Banganga and Kangra valleys; Sen (1955) in the Pinjore-Nalagarh and Soan dun valleys (including Sirsa Valley); Mohapatra (1966, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1982, 1990) and Mohapatra and Singh (1979a,b) in the Beas Valley, Sirsa Valley, and on Siwalik frontal slopes; Joshi et al. (1978) in the Markanda
Valley; Bhattacharya et al. (1981) in the Kangra Valley; Corvinus (1995, 2002) in the Siwaliks of Nepal. Additional investigations have been carried out by geologists, physical anthropologists, and vertebrate paleontologists and amateur archaeologists (Sahni and Khan, 1964; Mukerji, 1976a,b; Sharma, 1977; Soni and Soni, 2005). Although Acheulian bifaces have been occasionally reported as occurring with Soanian assemblages in the Siwalik Hills (de Terra and Paterson, 1939), the two types of assemblage usually occur separately in the Siwalik region (Joshi, 1967e68; Mohapatra, 1981; Rendell and Dennell, 1985; Corvinus, 1990). Recently, I have further highlighted differences between the Acheulian and Soanian assemblages that include artifact quantity, extent of cortex removal, the availability of suitable quartzite clasts, and recently dated geological features that suggest behavioral and chronological differences between these assemblages (Chauhan, 2003). In the Indian Siwaliks, for example, Acheulian bifaces, which retain little or no cortex, are geologically and geographically separate from the Soanian and occur in isolation in the Siwalik frontal range. Rich Acheulian sites with an abundance of bifaces or large cutting tools have not been reported from anywhere in the Siwalik region. For example, the number of artifacts in Mohapatras (1981) collection totals 120 from 21 sites dispersed in a NW-SE linear pattern. This suggests curation and discard of nished bifaces in the Siwalik zone after being produced elsewhere. In contrast to these sparse Acheulian occurrences, rich Soanian sites have been reported by de Terra and Paterson (1939); Paterson and Drummond (1962) in Pakistan, by Corvinus (2002) in Nepal; and most recently by the author in India (Chauhan, 2005a, 2007). These are in addition to the smaller but numerous lithic scatters reported by other workers (reviewed above). Despite these numerous efforts, many have erroneously relied on broad terrace sequences, undated geographic differences, and the presence/absence of expedient tool-types to determine Soanian technological progression through time. Indeed, doubts about de Terra and Patersons observations were reported by Gill (1951) and Sankalia (1957). Rendell and colleagues (1989) have shown the Soanian terraces observed by de Terra and Paterson to be erosional features in the Soan Valley, rather than true river terraces. The site of DehraGopipur on a Beas terrace (excavated by Mohapatra (1966)) although buried is a result of secondary deposition (Mohapatra, pers. comm.). Mohapatra and Singh (1979a) have also reported lithic artifacts in post-Siwalik stratied contexts, but only as isolated ndspots. Finally, alleged paleoanthropological occurrences from Late Pliocene-Early Pleistocene Siwalik sediments remain unsubstantiated (e.g., Verma, 1975, 1991; Sharma, 1977) or represent dubious claims (e.g., Singh, 2003). In sum, the dearth of stratied sites and absolute dates, unsystematic surveys, meager lithic assemblages, and the lack of a systematic typological framework have collectively hampered attempts to explicate the Soanian industry (Chauhan, 2007). Recent assessments of the South Asian record have suggested that most Soanian assemblages are younger than the Acheulian evidence in the region (Gaillard and Mishra,
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2001). Rendell et al. (1989) have placed the early Paleolithic in the Soan Valley of Pakistan as older than 30 ka. With the exception of the frontal slopes, the Siwalik Acheulian does not geographically overlap with Soanian sites, and the traditions do not occur in shared stratigraphic contexts. The Acheulian bifaces in the Indian Siwaliks come from surfaces of various formations and remain undated (Mohapatra, 1981, 1982), but the biface ndspots from the Pakistan Siwaliks have been bracketed between 600 and 400 ka (Rendell and Dennell, 1985). Most Soanian sites are geologically associated with post-Siwalik sediments or streams where the richer artifact clusters are probably not older than the associated raw material sources. Theoretically, if the youngest dates for the BCF in India (Ranga Rao et al., 1988, 1995; Sangode et al., 1996; Sangode and Kumar, 2003) are correct, then all Paleolithic sites associated with post-Siwalik sediments in the frontal zone and dun valleys should be younger than 600 ka and in most cases, younger than 200 ka. When also considering the presence of preparedcore technology at many Soanian sites, these estimates are broadly congruent with the currently-known Late and postAcheulian evidence from peninsular India (Misra, 2001). Indeed, Corvinus (2002) has interpreted the Paleolithic evidence from Arjun 3 in Nepal as being Middle Paleolithic, and a comparative morphometric study of some cores collected by de Terra and Paterson (1939) also supports their Levallois, or Mode 3, classication (Lycett, 2007). In a region that has experienced similar climatic conditions, the ages of climatically-controlled surfacesdin this case, postSiwalik uvial terracesdare often similar (Burbank and Anderson, 2001). If the post-Siwalik streams and their terraces in the Siwalik Frontal Zone are broadly contemporaneous, then associated paleolithic sites are, presumably, not older than these raw material sources. For example, recent optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of alluvial fans in the Pinjore dun valley (India) suggests that fan formation initiated well before 57 ka and continued at least to 20 ka (Suresh et al., 2002). The young age of Soanian assemblages associated with these fans (Karir et al., 1983; Karir, 1985; Chauhan, 2003; Soni and Soni, 2005) is corroborated by similar evidence from the Jammu Siwaliks to the northwest, where Ganjoo et al. (1993e94) estimate a lithic assemblage to be approximately 20 ka based on geological observations. These age estimates collectively accentuate a lengthier techno-functional continuity of heavy-duty implements since the Lower or Early Paleolithic, including choppers and core-scrapers in Soanian toolkits and younger Late Pleistocene lithic assemblages, rather than fully conforming to classic ake-dominated technology (i.e., Middle and Upper Paleolithic assemblages) as elsewhere in the region (Rendell and Dennell, 1987; Rendell et al., 1989). In sum, this growing body of multidisciplinary evidence rmly demonstrates a Late Acheulian-to-post-Acheulian age bracket for the Soanian where some assemblages may even be tentatively distinguishable as early and late types (Gaillard, 2006), based on the absence/presence of prepared-core technology and other related attributes at site and regional levels. In the past, most Soanian assemblages have not been easily correlated with Late Acheulian post-Acheulian assemblages because, as
Corvinus (2002: 31) states: The confusion in naming this industry (post-Acheulian ake assemblages in general) stems probably from the fact, that the Indian Middle Palaeolithic is not an easily recognizable industry such as the African Middle Stone Age. Most Middle Palaeolithic tool-kits in India do not show the clear-cut and well-developed Levallois technique with well-prepared discoidal cores and with Levallois-prepared ake tools, points and large blades, as known from Africa. The Middle Palaeolithic industries in India need a reevaluation. There seem to be many local varieties, caused by the different raw materials and the different environments. These observations have also been recently highlighted by James and Petraglia (2005), regarding the range of typotechnological diversity within the South Asian Middle Paleolithic. Soanian assemblages, and similar evidence from the Siwalik region, appear to represent such a variant in the South Asian Middle and Upper Paleolithic, north of the Indo-Gangetic plains. The study area and the known archaeological evidence The current study area encompasses the Siwalik frontal slopes and some interior zones between the Ghaggar River to the west and Markanda River to the east in the states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh in northern India. The area is approximately 60 km long and approximately 100 km2 (Fig. 3). This zone was selected for three fundamental reasons: 1) the two large rivers created natural geographical boundaries of the study area containing numerous streams and associated terraces, features not studied previously at a systematic landscape level; 2) the region between the two rivers had remained archaeologically unexplored; and 3) the known presence of rich surface assemblages were known near the Markanda River (Verma and Srivastava, 1984). Much of the sedimentary and stratigraphic information for this area has been well documented by Gill (1983a,b). The exposed sediments between the two major rivers belong to Lower, Middle, and Upper Siwalik Subgroups and are distributed in a NW-SE linear and parallel pattern. In the immediate frontal or proximal zone where the archaeological sites are located, Tatrot sediments are dominant and Pinjore and BCF exposures are absent. The Ghaggar River, which forms the western boundary of the study area, ows south-to-southwest, cutting through the Upper Siwalik formations before debouching on to the plains to the south. Here, Nakata (1972) has observed ve terraces, presumably formed as a result of incision caused by episodic uplift along the Himalayan Front (Malik et al., 2003). The Markanda River, forming the easternmost boundary of the study area, is a northeasterly tributary of the much larger Ghaggar River, and is better studied than the latter. The Markanda River originates in the Dharidhar Range in the north at an elevation of 1500 m above mean sea level (AMSL) and ows up to the plains to the south, a distance of 30 km, where it eventually reaches a lower elevation of 400 m AMSL. The stratigraphic sequence of the uvial deposits was noted to contain ve, non-paired erosional terraces, T1 to T5, at varying heights (50 m, 30 m, 18 m, 15 m, and 5 m: Joshi et al., 1975, 1978). The relatively thin deposits consist of moderately
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Fig. 3. Raw material sources and Soanian sites in the study area between the Ghaggar and Markanda Rivers.
consolidated cobbly pebbly gravels (about 3 to 4 m thick) grading into brownish sandy silt (about 1 m thick). The degradational or strath terrace sediments appear to have formed as an indirect result of tectonic activity spanning the Pleistocene (Kumar et al., 2001). It is further inferred by Rajaguru and Badam (1999) from the efforts of Joshi et al. (1975, 1978) that T3 and T4 are of Late Pleistocene age (their pedological character indicating a dry climate) and T5 of Holocene age; T1 and T2 are thought to date to the Middle Pleistocene. This is partly supported by palaeontological, palynological, and d13C studies of lacustrine sediments in the nearby Kumaon region, where an arid climate is recorded to start at 40 ka and last up to the early Holocene (Kotlia et al., 1997). The region receives rainfall from the southwestern monsoon between June and September, and the annual summer rainfall is less than 1000 mm; the region also receives winter rain, which is less than 10% of the total annual rainfall (Rajaguru and Badam, 1999). Both the Ghaggar and Markanda rivers appear to have maintained a dynamic equilibrium despite ongoing or neotectonic activity in the frontal zones, a process common with major rivers along these hills (Burbank, 1992; Lave and Avouac, 2000). The older source of raw material, the BCF, is located to the north, the west, and the east of the Siwalik frontal slopes. This Conglomerate Member (Gill, 1983a) essentially constitutes a thick section of gravel sediments interspersed with lenses of sandy-clays and is located at an average distance of one
to eight km from the frontal range or the plains to the south of the hills. General fabric analyses of megaclasts in this formation reveal a southerly to southwesterly direction of deposition, rapidly accumulating as fan deposits (Gill, 1983b; Gill and Gaur, 1986). Located between the two large rivers, are several post-Siwalik streams, which occur every three to ve km from west to east. Many of these streams originate in the BCF exposures to the north, thus uvially transporting conglomerates through narrow gorges within the hills before owing out onto the plains as braided or meandering channels. Along these canyons, remnants of now-uplifted terraces are preserved in a random pattern and at varying elevations (or may have never even formed, with stream gradients correspondingly steeper here). Along the courses of the streamsd particularly within the interior zonesdmost of these terraces occur as single elevated units above the streambeds. Where more than one terrace is visible along the same stream, they are generally non-paired and rarely exceed two in number, unlike the larger river terraces of the Markanda and Ghaggar rivers, which contain up to ve paired terraces each. The general stratigraphic sequence of these terrace deposits include cobbles and gravels overlain by altering layers of sands and silts, all of varying thickness. Both the terrace deposits and the streambeds represent post-Siwalik sources of raw material (Fig. 4). The major post-Siwalik streams in the study area that contain variable amounts of clastic material are (from west to east): a) Nadah Choe, b) Mulawali Choe, c) Khetpurali Choe,
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Fig. 4. The high density of clastic material in the streambed of Run Nadi.
Fig. 6. The unconformable contact between post-Siwalik conglomerates (above) and Upper Siwalik sediments (below) at Run Nadi junction.
d) Sangrel Nadi, e) Turan ka Nala, f) Ujjal ki Nadi, g) Run Nadi, and h) Trilokpur Nadi. The three streams, Dangri Nadi, Thathar ki Nadi, and Balrali Nadi contain extremely low loads of conglomerates and virtually no quartzite clasts (Fig. 5) and originate from gullies in the Lower Siwalik formations located four to ve km to the north and northwest, where the BCF is completely missing due to the Jansu Thrust fault (Gill, 1983a). Most of these post-Siwalik uvial deposits in the Siwalik Frontal range are either absent or disintegrated to varying degrees, and lie unconformably on older Siwalik sediments. At numerous locations along these streams, a sharp contact or interface between the two distinct stratigraphical units (postSiwalik sediments and underlying Siwalik sediments) is occasionally visible where the younger sediments are well-preserved and substantially thick (Fig. 6). This contact is prominent at almost all streams except at Mulawali Choe, Dangri Nadi, Thathar ki Nadi, and Run Nadi. At these locations, post-Siwaliks
Fig. 5. An extremely low density of clastic material in the bed of Thathar ki Nadi.
deposits are either completely absent, patchy, or covered by thick vegetation (see Verma and Srivastava, 1984), and/or exist in the form of thin lenses. Distinct contact between Siwalik and post-Siwalik sediments is only prominent at the following stream-frontal slope intersections: Nadah Choe, Khetpurali Choe, Sangrel Nadi, Ujjal ki Nadi, and Trilokpur Nadi. The presence of archaeological evidence in the Ghaggar region has been noted by Sahni and Khan (1964), Mohapatra (1974), and Mukerji (1976a,b) but additional detailed studies have not been conducted. The only known prehistoric investigations in the Markanda region were conducted by Joshi et al. (1975, 1978), Khanna (1981), Verma and Srivastava (1984), and Rajaguru and Badam (1999), who mostly reported paleolithic evidence and geological features from the Markanda Valley and adjoining regions. The extensive third terrace of the Markanda River has yielded Middle Paleolithic artifacts in stratied context (Verma and Srivastava, 1984; Rajaguru and Badam, 1999) as have T4 (Verma and Srivastava, 1984) and T5 (Sali, 1990). Many collections were also made by B.C. Verma (an ofcer in the Geological Survey of India) within the boundaries of the Saketi Fossil Park, some of which are on display in the parks museum. Most of the assemblages in the Markanda Valley are manufactured on quartzite pebbles and cobbles and include choppers, akes, and scrapers. While the Acheulian is conspicuously absent in the valley, Joshi et al. (1975) have documented a possible Acheulian biface associated with small choppers on pebbles from the Saketi area. Terraces T1 and T2 have not yielded convincing paleolithic material, whereas artifacts are known from all other terrace surfaces (Rajaguru and Badam, 1999). Unlike the sites reported by Mohapatra (1981) near Hoshiarpur to the northwest, my surveys did not yield any convincing evidence of Acheulian occupation in the study area concerned. Verma and Srivastava (1984) reported a number of surface scatters in the region between Toka and the Yamuna River (which has four to ve terraces) to the southeast, and includes typical Soanian assemblages located on terraces of varying
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size and adjoining Siwalik surfaces. No sites have been reported between the eastern bank of the Yamuna and the paleolithic sites reported further southeast in Nepal (Corvinus, 1995). Therefore, Verma and Srivastavas investigations currently mark the easternmost known occurrences of Soanian assemblages in India. Despite the lack of excavations and in situ occurrences, they concluded that the artifacts on the Upper Siwalik slopes (but lacking on Lower Siwalik exposures) as well as the assemblages on the Markanda terraces are eroding out from the ancient Siwalik surfaces. The investigators seek support for their observations from the work of Verma (1975) and Sharma (1977) who have also reported artifacts of Upper Siwalik or Plio-Pleistocene age: The tool types recovered from both these stratigraphic levels indicate the pre-existence of the culture and suggest the possibility that the artefacts occurring in the Siwalik outcrops in the Markanda Valley have their provenance in the Tatrot Formations (Verma and Srivastava, 1984: 17). In conclusion, they state: The occurrences indirectly suggest that the toolmaker lived in this region during the Upper Pliocene times, contrary to the terrace deposits only and the early man appeared in the Siwalik region during the Middle Pleistocene (Verma and Srivastava, 1984: 19). A secondary objective of the current study involved stratigraphic investigations to verify this claim. Methodology The basic methods in the present work involve a) systematic site surveys, b) general geomorphological observations, and c) geological trenching in a terrace context. Due to the high number of surface sites characteristic in the Siwalik region, a landscape approach seemed to be the best method for interpreting the archaeological evidence. The non-site or siteless survey is a strategy that assumes all encountered sites form a spatial continuity over the landscape, rather than viewing sites as individual entities within a given landscape (Dunnell and Dancey, 1983). Rather than focusing on discrete archaeological occurrences, the entire region is viewed as the location of a complex behavioral system. This method, which entails the careful survey and recording of artifacts typological and spatial properties together, at a wide range of resolutions and scales (Ebert and Camilli, 1993: 95) has been designated as distributional archaeology. To assert a possible intraregional pattern, an attempt was made to understand how Soanian lithic occurrences are organized in the Siwalik Frontal Zone, in relation to terrace deposits as well as to the surfaces belonging to various Siwalik formations, thus providing new information on how the hominins may have exploited the landscape at a regional scale and how differences within this landscape may have inuenced mobility and adaptive strategies. For example, Mohapatras (1981, 1982) survey on Siwalik frontal slopes focused only on Acheulian scatters and similar systematic surveys of Soanian sites have only been conducted in dun valleys (e.g., Karir, 1985; Corvinus, 2002), but never in the Siwalik Frontal Zone. Therefore, the following questions were addressed through this study: how are Soanian lithic scatters situated in relation to sources of
raw material and water and topographical stability? Is there a positive correlation between raw material abundance and artifact quantities? What are the approximate distances of raw material transport at such locations? Finally, what are the geoarchaeological attributes of the richest Soanian lithic occurrences? The eldwork took place between February 2001 and March 2004 through multiple eld seasons, and involved visiting some important known sites, preliminary explorations for new sites, artifact plotting, and geological trenching. Through systematic surveys, a total of 22 Paleolithic localities were located in the Siwalik Hills between Chandigarh and the Markanda River in Himachal Pradesh, supplementing some previous work in the eastern extreme of the study area by Verma and Srivastava (1984). All lithic occurrences were recorded with a Garmin Etrex Vista Global Positioning System and downloaded onto the Garmin Worldmap software to estimate distances between the lithic scatters and other features, all further conrmed through the Google Earth software. Relevant information from contour or topographic maps from the Survey of India (1:50,000 scale) and published literature on the archaeological and geological history of the Siwalik Hills was also incorporated. Specic geographic areas that were targeted in the eld include a) suitable raw material and water sources; b) areas with high surface visibility; intact negrained deposits along uplifted terrace systems; c) horizontally stable landforms; d) agricultural tracts; and e) paleochannel exposures. Some inaccessible terrains that may have also contained artifacts but that could not be surveyed included steep escarpments, highly vegetated areas, and zones isolated by deep gullies or seasonal bodies of water. Following initial surveys between the Ghaggar and Markanda rivers, two geological trenches were excavated on the uplifted terrace of the Tirlokpur Nadi at Toka, the largest Soanian locality known to date (Chauhan, 2005a,b) to test the claims of Verma and Srivastava (1984) who reported Late Pliocene artifacts from Upper Siwalik Tatrot sediments. This small-scale excavation was carried out where the sedimentary horizons were relatively thin and surface artifact concentration was high, in order to understand: a) the nature of the stratigraphic sequence above the Tatrot sediments, b) to locate buried artifacts in primary contexts, and c) to understand the spatial relationship (if any) between these artifacts. Newly discovered lithic scatters in the study area All sites discovered within and immediately outside the study area (Table 1), have been named according to their proximity to the nearest villages and include (from west to east): Nadah, Masumpura, Ganoli, Budh (I, II, III), Mandlar, Kundla, Churan, Bhandariwale-Mirpur, Toka, Johron, Bhudra, Andheri, Moginand (I and II), Dewni, and Dewni-Khadri (I and II). Virtually no paleolithic sites were observed between the Ghaggar River to the west and Dangri Nadi. This zone was not easily accessible for explorations due to its proximity to a military base (thus, photography was also restricted) in the area. Although Nadah Choe was partly accessible, the vegetation was too thick
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Table 1 Sites discussed in this paper and their associated contexts, artifact counts, raw material proximity, and raw material relative densities. Low, Medium, and High are arbitrary divisions that broadly distinguish between variable amounts of clasts in a given location Site Context Artifact count Nearest raw material Source Ghaggar River/terraces Nadah Choe Mulawali Choe Khetpurali Choe Dangri Nadi Thathar ki Nadi Balrali Nadi Sangrel Nadi Sangrel Nadi Sangrel Nadi? or its tributary? Sangrel Nadi? or its tributary? Turan ka Nala Ujjal ki Nadi Ujjal ki Nadi Run Nadi Tirlokpur Nadi Tirlokpur Nadi Tirlokpur Nadi Run Nadi Markanda River/terraces Markanda River/terraces Markanda River/terraces Markanda River/terraces Markanda River/terraces Jainti Majri Choe site on isolated gravel outcrop Karor Nadi Karor Nadi Karor Nadi Markanda River/terraces Distance (km) (0.5) Conglomerates in stream/river Amount of quartzite
1. Nadah
on Pinjore surface
2. Masumpura 3. Ganoli 4. Bhud 5. Bhud II 6. Bhud III 7. Mandlar 8. Kundla 9. Churan 10. BhandariwaleMirpur 11. Toka 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. Johron Bhudra Andheri Moginand Moginand II Dewni Dewni-Khadri Dewni-Khadri II
on Tatrot surface in frontal zone on plains south of Siwalik hills on Tatrot surface in interior zone on Tatrot surface in frontal zone in post-Siwalik streambed in frontal zone where plains and frontal zone intersect on Tatrot surface sediments on Tatrot surface on Tatrot surface on Tatrot surface and in post-Siwalik in frontal zone in interior zone near Markanda River
1 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 18 1 1 16 1 2 279 4106 1 26 4 1 2 3 1 1 1 523 1 2 1 1
(1.0) (0.5) (0) (0.5) (0.5) (1.0) (1.5) (0) (<1.0) (0 to <1.0) (2.0) (1.0) (1.0) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (1.0) (0) (0.2) (0.5) (1.0) (1.1)
High High High High Low Low Low High High High High High High High Medium High High High Medium High High High High High Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium High
High High Medium High Low Low Low Low Low Low Low Low Medium Medium Low High High High Low High High High High High Low Medium Low Low Low High
Important sites immediately outside the main study area: 20. Jainti Majri on Pinjore surface on frontal zone 21. Karor Uparli 22. 23. 24. 25. Tandi-Bara Gurha Kuri Saketi Fossil Park on Pinjore surface in interior zone on Tatrot surface in frontal
and did not allow comprehensive explorations. Therefore much of the landscape archaeology focused on the region between Dangri Nadi in the western part of the study area and Markanda River to the east, where sites are noticeably more abundant. While the general locations of the lithic scatters are probably related to hominin discard behavior, the variance in their respective quantities may also be partially due to a host of post depositional geological and anthropogenic mechanisms (Chauhan and Gill, 2002). Almost all recovered artifacts, however, are fresh and lack any evidence of rolling (i.e., uvial transport) or abrasion (i.e., surface transport through colluvial action or slope wash) indicating minimal lateral disturbance. From the exclusive presence of nonbiface artifact types and from the collective absence of i) Acheulian tool types, ii) biface-thinning akes, and iii) typical Upper Paleolithic types (Mohapatra, 1979) such as blades, the Soanian evidence on the Siwalik frontal slopes (in the study area and in general) probably belongs to late Lower to early Middle Paleolithic technologies. This is
particularly prominent at Toka and similar sites in the Siwalik region in the form of prepared-core technology including Levallois elements (Paterson and Drummond, 1962; Corvinus, 2002; Chauhan, 2005a, 2007; Lycett, 2007). With the exception of Toka (n 4106), Karor Uparli (n 523), and Bhandariwale-Mirpur (n 279), almost all other sites represent off-sites with a minimal number of artifacts. Verma and Srivastava (1984) reported numerous surface scatters from this area, indicating that such occurrences may have been part of a larger site complex before it became distorted through various geomorphological processes. Off-sites immediately outside the study area are represented by one artifact each at Jainti Majri (ake), Tandi-Bara (ake), and Kuri (core), all west of the Ghaggar River near Chandigarh, and one ake within the Saketi Fossil Park near the Markanda River, ve km east of the study area. Almost all of these are located on surfaces of the Pinjore and Tatrot formations in the frontal or interior areas including modern plow-zones, and are spatially
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associated within a 1 km radius (often, much closer) of a given nearby post-Siwalik stream or remnant terrace deposits. Some of these occurrences may represent isolated extensions of primary site clusters, particularly those near Toka. The four lithic specimens at Ganoli were recovered on Holocene alluvial deposits, in the plains to the south of the Siwalik frontal slopes, probably reecting short-distance surface transport. The topography at most of the off-sites is relatively stable and does not exhibit intense tilting of the underlying Siwalik sediments; only a few specimens were recovered on steep slopes and from varying elevations, denoting some colluvial action following erosional processes. At some locations, the relatively low numbers of artifacts was presumably explained by the low occurrence of quartzite clasts nearby. Reasons for the low number or virtual absence of artifacts at ideal locations (e.g., ample raw material, water, adequate tree cover, at topography) may be related to such factors as chronological differences between post-Siwalik streams, topographic instability (Bhave and Deo, 1997e98), or simply reect irregular patterns of land-use. Bhandariwale-Mirpur and Karor Uparli The site of Bhandariwale-Mirpur may be broadly contemporaneous with Toka given their close proximity to each other. The Bhandariwale-Mirpur locality is situated approximately one km east of the Run Nadi, where quartzite clasts are found in low quantity. A total of 279 artifacts were collected from here (predominantly akes and debitage) in an agricultural eld and Tatrot slopes at the foot of the Siwalik Frontal range. The artifacts are spread out over an area of approximately 500 m2 and appear to represent short-distance surface transport through colluvial and uvial processes. This is inferred from the presence of unconsolidated underlying sediments in the agricultural eld representing sediment build-up through surface wash processes, resulting in mixed sediments belonging to the Tatrot Formation to the north (the probable original provenance of the assemblage). The site has yielded the second largest assemblage in the study area, and although close to the Run Nadi, may have been an isolated extension of the Toka site complex. The second richest lithic occurrence is Karor Uparli (n 523) on the western margin of the study area. The assemblage is spread out over an area of 450 m2, and is situated on a hilltop at a distance of one km from the closest stream, Karor Nadi, overlooking a small valley and plains to the southwest. A part of the site may represent an uplifted paleochannel situated on a Pinjore surface, the gravel from the paleochannel being the direct source of raw material. However, the assemblage itself is probably of post-Siwalik age, from general characteristics such as its fresh condition and the presence of advanced discoidal scrapers on intensively-retouched akes and a broad resemblance to most known Soanian assemblages. The majority of clasts and sediments of the paleochannel may have been eroded or washed away following its uplift, as the outcrop is spatially restricted and does not seem to continue laterally in the vicinity. There is no additional evidence of post depositional disturbance, though none of the artifacts have been buried due to the
compact nature of the underlying sandstone and the lack of sedimentation (e.g., streams) in the immediate area. Toka and associated geoarchaeological features Due to an unusually large number of Soanian artifacts recovered (n 4106) and associated geological features, the site of Toka (30 310 3400 N; 77 110 3400 E) served as an ideal case study to understand Soanian land-use and site formation at a single location. The site-complex is situated on the Siwalik frontal slopes at the southern edge of the Sirmaur District, in the state of Himachal Pradesh (Fig. 7). Some of the evidence from here may have been reported previously by Verma and Srivastava (1984); however, this is not explicit in their publication. General observations of tool-types, artifact quantity, and modes of lithic manufacture here suggest terminal Acheulian or early Middle Paleolithic levels of technology (Chauhan, 2007). Some specimens from Toka and other Soanian occurrences (e.g., Paterson and Drummond, 1962; Corvinus, 2002; Chauhan, 2007) resemble Middle Stone Age evidence known from elsewhere in India (e.g., Sankalia, 1974; Pappu, 2001b; Pal, 2002) and some regions of Africa (Lycett, 2007). Over 46% of the Toka specimens are made on tan-colored quartzite (the predominant color in the region) and the remainder are burgundy, black, dark gray, white, brownish-tan, dark purple, and often combinations of these colors. Following a preliminary examination of associated Tatrot sandstone nodules and fragments, no convincing artifacts were observed on this material and informal aking of these clasts conrmed its inferior quality in comparison with the quartzite clasts. Investigators working elsewhere in the Siwaliks have documented non biface artifacts on vein quartz, when quartzite clasts were unavailable or present in minimal quantities (Ganjoo et al., 1993e94), and also on tuff and chert (Corvinus, 2002). In view of the fresh condition of most artifacts at Toka, it appears that the paleosurface and associated artifact scatters were probably disturbed gradually and in low-energy environments. The Toka site-complex extends one km north-south and about 800 m east-west, and the topographical elevation in the immediate area reaches 435 m AMSL. During hominin occupation, this location appears to have accommodated a relatively at topography prior to its uplift and intense erosion visible today. The most signicant factor for a comparatively lengthy occupation of this location was the post-Siwalik Tirlokpur Nadi. This streambed and its paleochannel, currently in the form of incised/uplifted terrace deposits, were the only available sources of quartzite clasts in the vicinity for stone tool manufacture. The next closest sources are the Run Nadi, another post-Siwalik stream 2 km northwest and the antecedent Markanda River, 3 to 4 km southeast. The Tirlokpur Nadi emanates from the north and ows in a southwest direction towards the plains. The water level in the stream seldom rises higher than three meters from the base of the section between the monsoon months of July and September. However, this ow ceases within a few days after the monsoon rains and the stream is generally reduced to small pools
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Fig. 7. Topography, drainage, and the location of Toka and other sites in the eastern part of the study area. (also see Fig. 4). (map produced from Survey of India Toposheet 53 F-2).
of water between monsoon seasons (October and June). This seasonality applies to the entire landscape including other such streams and rivers emanating from the hills on to the plains.
The geology here is dominated by the Upper Siwalik Tatrot Formation of Pliocene age, represented by ne-grained sediments and coarse clastic material (sandstone nodules) (Gill, 1983a). The residual sediments are represented by an uplifted
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Fig. 8. A view looking northeast across a part of Toka.
post-Siwalik terrace and related gravel/conglomerate lag deposits above the Tatrot sediments at several locations where the Tirlokpur Nadi once owed before tectonic uplift altered its course. The Pinjore and BCF formations are completely absent here and all the Tatrot and post-Siwalik sediments are further dissected at places by small ephemeral streamlets. Additional physical features of the site-complex are a 60 m high ridge or scarp that divides the two main parts of the site, as well as numerous gullies, slopes, rills, and erosional canyons (Fig. 8). Most of the artifacts are found over an area of approximately 1 km2 on the surrounding low-lying slopes of the Tatrot Formation, and they also occur on this escarpment (of Tatrot Formation) and others like it in the northern part of the site. The stratigraphic sequence of the most complete exposed section comprises three distinct sedimentary units from the bottom up (Fig. 9): a) tilted Tatrot sediments serving as bedrock; b) a post-Siwalik pebble/cobble horizon (conglomerate layer); and c) a post-Siwalik sand unit. This sequence is generally
Fig. 9. A schematic stratigraphic sequence of the western wall in Trench A at Toka and associated artifact contexts.
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Fig. 10. Block-diagram of the stratigraphic sequence at Toka and mode of artifact exposure from agricultural activities.
observed at other similar locations (with minor stratigraphic and compositional variation), where the streams intersect the frontal zone before debouching onto the plains. The Tatrot strata are situated diagonally (Fig. 10), a result of intense folding processes and the two overlying units form the post-Siwalik remnant terrace, which local farmers have utilized for agricultural purposes. The terrace-section is located w2 m to 25 m above the active stream grade, and its deposits extend laterally approximately 45 m (Figs. 11 and 12). The stratigraphy of the post-Siwalik part of the section was conrmed through two trenches (A and B) on the uplifted terrace, excavated to varying depths (Fig. 13). Trench A was 1 m 1.5 m and Trench B was 2 m 1.5 m. The conglomerate unit is the most distinct stratum and comprises predominantly sandstone and occasional quartzite pebbles and cobbles, semi-consolidated sand, and small quartzite pebbles (Fig. 14). The top levels of this unit were
excavated and yielded only two artifacts at the conglomeratesand interface at a depth of >80 cm below the surface (Fig. 15). The ne sand above the interface is yellowish-brown (10YR 5/4 on the Munsell Soil Color chart). One specimen is a rolled chopper and the other is a secondary ake with a cortical platform and both are in comparatively fresh condition (Fig. 16). The artifacts within the conglomerate may have been deposited over a longer period of time than those in the overlying sand (see Schackley, 1978; Wandsnider, 1995; Shea, 1999). Similar evidence comes from the site of Arjun 3 in Nepal (Corvinus, 2002). In such contexts, the lithics are found lying above a gravel horizon and under a stratum of silt (Arjun 3) or sand (Toka). At Toka, the topmost unit above the conglomerate layer ranges from less than 1 m to 3 m in thickness, relatively thin in comparison to the Conglomerate and Tatrot units. This topmost unit is comprised of ne-grained and semi-consolidated loamy sand and represents a channel-ll deposit under
Fig. 11. A portion of the uplifted/incised terrace deposits at Toka. Note the near-vertical Tatrot beds underlying the post-Siwalik conglomerates and sand layers. The highest part of the section is at least 20 meters high from the streambed.
Fig. 12. A close-up view of the horizontal post-Siwalik terrace deposits.
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Fig. 13. Trench B (excavated) looking east. The excavated (and now covered) Trench A is located directly behind Trench B. Note the corresponding terrace deposits on the opposite side behind the red building and the Siwalik Hills in the background.
Fig. 15. Two exposed artifacts (circled), found to be resting on top of the postSiwalik conglomerate layer.
a moderate-ow regime. This horizon is capped by a thin deposit of topsoil that varies from 1 to 15 cm in relative thickness. This topsoil is dark brown (10YR 3/3) and buried artifacts (n 6) are found within it (between 6 to 15.5 cm below the surface). However, most buried specimens (n 12) were recovered from the sand horizon below the topsoil (some 16 to 25 cm below the surface; Fig. 17) where the color is a darker shade of yellowish-brown (10 YR 4/6 Munsell). All buried artifacts in this trench (Trench B) are clustered in the southeastern half of the trench, possibly a result of localized surface wash (winnowing) and plowing (Jhaldiyal, 1998). It is currently difcult to gauge the extent of plow-disturbance at the site. The specimens buried in the sand below the topsoil may be in semiprimary context or may represent trickling from the surface of the terrace, before becoming embedded from plowing action and surface wash processes in recent
decades. This type of contextual situation is geologically consistent with other localities in the Siwalik Hills, such as the Banganga Valley (Jammu) (Ganjoo et al., 1993e94) and the Beas Valley (Lal, 1956). More than 500 artifacts were observed on the entire terrace surface at Toka, most of which were akes, debitage, and angular fragments. Very few cores or nished tools such as choppers and discoids were observed here. There also appeared to be a size restriction on the terrace specimens, which rarely exceeded 10 cm in length, unlike the evidence on Tatrot sediments elsewhere on the site. This may suggest a disturbed (i.e., plowing) hominin occupational surface or that most of the larger specimens may have been removed by farmers over time. None of the lithic specimens from the test-trenching ret, and thus they do not appear to be in behavioral/spatial association with each other; a more positive result may be seen from future ret attempts with
Fig. 14. The stratigraphy inside Trench A facing north. Arrow denotes the interface between the sandy and pebbly layers.
Fig. 16. A fresh ake found in Trench A in the interface.
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Fig. 17. Close-up view of the excavation of Trench B which yielded in situ artifacts.
the entire terrace assemblage as well as specimens from elsewhere on the site. In the Toka area, Verma and Srivastava (1984) reported paleolithic artifacts eroding out of the Tatrot sediments of Pliocene age (see Gaillard and Mishra, 2001, for a similar argument elsewhere in the Siwalik Hills). No such evidence, however, was observed by the author at Toka or elsewhere in the study area, which is dominated by the Tatrot Formation. The test-trenches described above, as well as a water pipeline trench across a part of Toka through Tatrot exposures, conrmed the context of the artifacts (Chauhan and Gill, 2002). Where artifacts were found buried within Tatrot sediments or seemingly eroding out of them, they actually represented results of burial and/or re-exposure through colluvial action, monsoon-related surface runoff, or downslope displacement (Mohapatra and Singh, 1979a; Chauhan and Gill, 2002). In contrast, the contextual integrity of the artifacts appears to be associated with the post-Siwalik sedimentary layers above the Tatrot beds, implying a considerably younger age as Verma and Srivastava originally considered, but then negated, from observations at 75 localities (of only 5 to 15 artifacts at each location): Close association of stone artefacts and vertebrate fossils throughout the area under examination poses an intriguing problem as whether to accept them to be of a common stratigraphic level or taking one (fossils) as Pliocene in age and the artefacts of a later period, and accidental. This however, seems highly improbable (1984: 17). From general observations by the author, this close but misleading association of stone artifacts and vertebrate fossils appears to be a result of winnowing and deation from erosion and seasonal uvial processes on the underlying Tatrot sediments (the source of the fossils) and post-Siwalik sediments (the source of the artifacts) in addition to the lack of post-Siwalik sedimentation (i.e., the lack of artifact burial) at different places on the site (Fig. 18). Ultimately, it can also be safely assumed that the archaeological material is not older than the associated post-Siwalik raw material source (i.e., Tirlokpur
Nadi) since the Tatrot Formation exposures here and elsewhere do not contain any quartzite clasts. From the combination of a) Siwalik sedimentation processes, b) site location in relation to post-Siwalik streams across the Siwalik frontal slopes, and c) subsequent postdepositional processes that have altered the associated artifact scatters, it was possible to schematically visualize the formational history of Toka. Since requisite information, such as the precise timing and associated rates of sedimentation and uplift is lacking, it is currently impossible to accurately gauge the height and morphological features of the earlier topography, before it developed into its present-day form. Nonetheless, changing scenarios of potential topographic elevations have been hypothesized using a series of schematic block diagrams (Fig. 19aec). The image in Fig. 19a shows an intact portion of Toka during the depositional phase of the Tatrot sediments, prior to hominin occupation (Late Pliocene). Figure 19b, in the middle, illustrates the site of Toka during hominin occupation, when the Tirlokpur Nadi is depicted at a lower level (prior to its uplift). The Siwalik Hills behind the paleo-Tirlokpur Nadi may have been more eroded than they appear in the gure. Finally, Fig. 19c shows the site of Toka as it appears today. The presence of the artifacts on the uplifted terrace may also suggest hominin occupation following the spatial shift of Tirlokpur Nadis channel, although it is currently difcult to estimate the duration of occupation. From these reconstructions, and the observation of the post depositional processes and associated artifact conditions, it appears that some artifacts have not shifted considerably from their original location of discard except where uvial channels have cut through parts of the sites, transporting the smaller specimens. This is inferred by the generally concentrated patterns of surface scatters at most Soanian sites, their overall fresh-condition, and relative topographical stability of the surrounding area. In short, greater vertical movement seems to have taken place, rather then substantial horizontal displacement. Unlike the rolled specimens in the test trench on the terrace, ake artifacts associated with the surface gravel lag deposits on Tatrot sediments elsewhere on a southern part of the site are invariably fresh. This possibly suggests the use of a paleochannel source for raw material acquisition as well as for stone tool manufacture during hominin occupation, in addition to clasts in the then-extant streambed (e.g., Armand, 1983; Stout et al., 2005: 365). Discussion The relationships demonstrated in this paper, between the Soanian lithic occurrences and conglomeratic raw material sources are supported by similar evidence elsewhere throughout the Siwalik region of Pakistan, Indian, and Nepal. For example, most of the new occurrences of artifacts (some in situ) and surface scatters described by Stiles (1978) appear to be in association with either (Potwar) silts or conglomerates (both BCF and post-Siwalik gravels). The British Archaeological Mission to Pakistan located extensive lithic workshops of varying traditions and ages on the Lei (post-Siwalik) and
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Fig. 18. Geological map of the southern part of Toka with a plot of artifacts and vertebrate fossils. The photograph shows the location of the plot looking south. The plot and topographic lines are not to scale.
Siwalik Conglomerates covered by loess deposits (Allchin, 1995; Dennell, 1998). In the Pinjore-Nalagarh dun in northern India, Karir (1985) has presupposed that all artifacts (including akes) were made from locally available pebbles. In Nepal, in the Tui Valley, an industry of akes and cores (bifaces are absent) was recovered from the basal alluvium of a quartzite cobble-boulder gravel, occurring below the stratied silts and clays of the Babai Formation at Brakhuti (Corvinus, 1995). Similar specimens are found elsewhere in the Tui Valley in high numbers, where the associated
cobble-boulder gravel is exposed (above the bedrock and below the silt). Prior to the BCF and concluding depositional phases, the availability of suitable raw material in the Siwalik region was minimal. Even when post-Siwalik or post-BCF sources of raw material became more widely available on the landscape during post-Siwalik times, they probably occurred in inconsistent geographic and chronological patterns. The current study has demonstrated that not all post-Siwalik streams and rivers are connected to BCF exposures and thus, contain variable
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Fig. 19. Block-diagrams depicting the possible formational history of Toka.
quantities of quartzite clasts. The sparse number of paleolithic occurrences in the Pinjore Formation may be partly attributed to this lack of suitable raw material (Chauhan, 2003, 2005a), an important factor explored in greater detail by Dennell (2007). Sites spatially associated with the BCF may be contemporary with it, although convincing stratigraphic evidence for such circumstances is currently lacking. Theoretically, it is also possible that isolated artifacts found on Tatrot and Pinjore surfaces may have eroded out from these sediments (see Dennell, 2004) rather than being post-Siwalik in age. Unfortunately, this has never been convincingly demonstrated through controlled excavations and secure stratigraphic and geochronological documentation in ne-grained sediments anywhere in the Siwalik region. In comparison with BCF exposures, however, the spatial patterns of post-BCF sources of raw material clearly allowed Soanian hominins to disperse more widely across the Siwalik regionea direct example of ecological adaptation at a landscape level (e.g., Schick, 1987; Rogers et al., 1994).
Geoarchaeological investigations at over twenty locations in and near the study area, in relation to the post-BCF sources of raw material in the Siwalik Frontal Zone conrmed that artifacts are found in diverse contexts in the region. Most sites in the study area are situated at elevations ranging from 360 m (plains) to 500 m (Siwalik slopes or uplifted post-Siwalik stream terraces) above mean sea level. Mohapatra (1985) observes that most Soanian sites in the Siwalik region lie between 300 m to 700 m AMSL. However, some of these localities have been uplifted as a result of tectonic activity and/or disintegration of various types of ne-grained surfaces of Siwalik formations along the Himalayan Frontal Thrust fault system. Recent geological investigations such as those of Kumar et al. (2001), Powers et al. (1998), and Ganjoo (1993) have collectively demonstrated that certain Siwalik frontal slopes were uplifted during late upper Pleistocene and even Holocene times. For example, the geological setting of the Toka area marks the tectonically-active zone where the Kala Amb (Black Mango) Fault is located (Kumar et al., 2001). Active deformation along this thrust is manifested by scarps, uplift, and folding of Quaternary deposits (Nakata, 1972; Baker et al., 1988), features with which paleolithic sites in the Siwalik Frontal Zone (e.g., Mohapatra, 1981; this study) and dun valleys (e.g., Corvinus, 1995) are occasionally associated. Most sites are located within a 3 km radius of the frontal slopes or major river/stream banks and artifacts are found as parts of nd spots, off-sites, or surface clusters ranging from less than 100 m2 to almost 1 km2 in area, and at varying elevations up to 90 m above the plains to the south. Artifacts in buried context were only documented at Toka, although future subsurface investigations at comparable geological contexts should yield additional buried assemblages. Most sites are concentrated between Sangrel Nadi and Tirlokpur Nadi where quartzite clasts occur in varying frequencies, which is partly correlated with the inter-site variation in artifact quantity. After Toka, the highest numbers of artifacts were found at Bhandariwale-Mirpur (n 279) near the Run Nadi and at Karor Uparli (n 523) near Jainti Majri Choe. Judging from such large numbers of artifacts, hominin occupation at such locations probably represents either short-term intensive activity or repeated visits over a longer period of time, particularly at Toka (Chauhan, 2005a, 2007). Although a broad tethering effect (Brantingham, 2003) is archaeologically visible, the distribution of sites and related frequencies of artifacts are not always proportionate to the amount of raw material available in the vicinity. For example, many equally ideal locations did not yield any artifacts: Dangri Choe and Sangrel Nadi, and the offsites (one artifact each) at Nadah, Bade II/III, Masumpura, Kundla, Johron, Moginand I/II, Dewni-Khadri I/II, Saketi Fossil Park, Tandi-Bara, Jainti Majri, Gurha, and Kuri, despite nearby raw material. One reason for this inconsistency in site distribution in the frontal zones may be that some raw material sources (particular streams or outcrops) visible today may not have been available during hominin occupation of the region. In that respect, areas between Bhudra and Andheri (near Tirlokpur Nadi) and Turan ka Nala terraces at Mandlar
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need to be reinvestigated as well as the interior Siwaliks from Sangrel Nadi, northwards towards Mauhliwala and Dunga. Unfortunately, the patterns of site distribution and associated sources of raw material currently do not reveal much in terms of geographical territory size (Brantingham, 2003). At Toka and other locations in this study, the majority of lithic scatters was produced on Tatrot surfaces and consequently, were probably not buried following their discard (see Wandsnider, 1995), making it difcult to ascertain their precise lateral extent. Therefore, it remains unclear whether the archaeological evidence in surface context represents continuous occupation or sporadic occupational phases. As a result, only interregional comparisons of assemblages can be made, whereas intersite comparisons within a smaller region may be less reliable. Excluding terraces, the Siwalik Frontal Zone or frontal slopes were most exploited in comparison with other landscapes in the Siwalik region. This was probably related to a number of features including the increased availability of raw material and water sources as well as a higher vantage point above the plains. A similar example of clast exploitation in hillslope context is provided by Pappu (2001b) who reports Middle Paleolithic evidence from Tamil Nadu in southeastern India and by Corvinus (2002) who described the Middle Paleolithic site of Arjun 3 to be situated in ecological and topographic contexts very similar to those of Toka. The distributional patterns of such sites highlight the expedient use of such raw material forms and the most important factors for site location/selection appear to have been the presence of raw material combined with a stable topography. The association of artifacts with the exposed conglomerate-sand interface at Toka may represent situations where hominins were exploiting the streambed for raw material (indicating seasonal and syndepositional occupation), and exploiting oodplain or existing terrace deposits as well (indicating postdepositional occupation). In broadly similar contexts such as the Oldowan, for example, raw material was transported from only a few kilometers to less than a kilometer, and most such routes to-and-from raw material sources probably did not follow a straight-line (e.g., Blumenschine et al., 2007). In the Siwalik region, it appears that long-distance transport of raw material was equally marginal, presumably owing to the suitable quartzite clasts available at frequent lateral intervals (Mukerji, 1979). Owing to this frequent availability of raw material, the curation of nished tools rather than pebble/cobble blanks was more common. There is limited, though indenite, evidence of possible quartzite clast transport of up to a maximum of 1 km from their geological/uvial sources such as streambeds and paleochannels. General observations reveal most locations to be in the frontal zone within a radius of 1 km from major streams that represented the sources of raw material. This is supported by the proximity of sites to major sources of raw material, which do not seem to be further than 3 to 4 km in maximum distance. Sites are often located adjacent to such sources (e.g., Toka) or are a part of such scatters of clasts in the form of gravel/conglomerate outcrops (e.g., Karor Uparli) in the interior zones. Rarely are sites located in the plains to the south and interior hills or slopes, beyond 2 to 3 km from the frontal zone. This
evidence for very local procurement of stone is consistent with that from other paleolithic studies including in India, which suggest that stone was rarely carried more than 10 km, and usually less than 4 km from its source (Petraglia et al., 1999; Noll and Petraglia, 2003; Dennell, 2004: 434; 2007; Chauhan, in press). There are three visible ecological features that may have acted as potential corridors for movement between the plains to the south of the hills and the duns to the north of the hills; for example, the distance between the frontal zone near Chandigarh and the Sirsa Nadi in the Pinjore-Nalagarh dun to the northeast is approximately 7 km. One example is the small and at erosional valleys of probably upper Pleistocene age within the Siwalik Hills (separate from duns), tentatively supported by the presence of paleolithic assemblages between Chandigarh and the Pinjore-Nalagarh dun, represented by such localities as Tandi-Bara, Jainti Majri, Gurha, Kuri, and Karor Uparli (see Mukerji, 1979). Additional corridors are represented by the large rivers and related terrace systems which often dissect the Siwalik Hills perpendicularly (e.g., Ghaggar, Markanda). The nal feature is represented by the numerous post-Siwalik streams that emanate from the interior parts of the hills. Such streams may have provided direct access routes to oral and faunal resources within the otherwise inaccessible landscape, largely impenetrable owing to its highrelief character and often thick patches of vegetation at places. Many of these streambeds are frequently used by villagers even today to reach small villages or hamlets deep in the interior. Conclusion The majority of the Siwalik paleolithic evidence, traditionally designated as Soanian, represents an integral part of the prehistoric colonization of the Indian subcontinent. This body of evidence is represented by paleolithic sites variably comprising Mode 1 and Mode 3 assemblages that formed through the transport and reduction of quartzite pebble and cobble clasts. These sites are found in multiform geographic settings such as on slopes of various Siwalik Formations, large river terraces, small stream terraces, and in the intermontane dun valleys located between the Siwalik Hills and the Lesser Himalaya. This study demonstrates that the lithic scatters in the Siwalik Frontal Zone between the Markanda and Ghaggar river systems suggest differential modes of land-use and site formation. The wider uvial and geomorphic distribution of post-Siwalik raw material sources appears to have facilitated Soanian occupation and stimulated dispersal throughout the Siwalik region. Recovered Soanian assemblages were usually in relatively fresh condition, indicating minimal localized natural transport through intermittent tectonic uplift and seasonal low-energy uvial processes. The majority of site locations represented combined sources of water and quartzite sources, the latter divided into BCF exposures and post-BCF or postSiwalik sources. Sites were generally found within three km of raw material sources and artifacts were found in higher numbers along the banks, in the form of elevated terraces, of
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these streams (in comparison to Siwalik slopes away from raw material sources). Where quartzite was absent or marginally available, an absence of artifactsepresumably relatedewas also noted. Essentially, hominins that exploited pebbles and cobbles in general, do not appear to have transported these clasts to considerable distances from their uvial or geological sources. Due to extensive tectonic and erosional regimes during and after hominin occupation, most lithic assemblages have remained on the surface following their discard, and in most cases, are not chronologically associated with underlying Siwalik Formations. When primary stratied occurrences are found, they are rare and laterally limited. At sites like Toka, if tectonic regimes were prominent during the terminal phases of hominin occupation, such locales may have become topographically unsuitable for occupation. After reaching an equilibrium state, prehistoric populations may have been gradually forced out of this ecozone, as a consequence of intense uplift regimes, decrease in vegetation, and causal uctuations in fauna. Until stratied evidence is recovered and dated from such older contexts, all Paleolithic evidence in this region (e.g., Soanian) should be viewed as being post-Siwalik or post-BCF in relative age or simply younger than 600 ka. This widespread pebbledand-cobble-based technology and associated land-use patterns appears to have existed at least since the mid-Pleistocene, thus making it contemporary at different times with Lower, Middle, and even Upper Paleolithic traditions found in peninsular India. The location of lithic assemblages away from the main sources of raw material and water in the frontal zone implies increased mobility and long-term planning, requiring an in-depth ecological and geographic knowledge of the landscape. As a consequence, this may have fostered active social networks between major long-term habitation and workshop sites. Future efforts on excavating and dating primary sites within ne-grained contexts will shed light on the earliest Soanian evidence as well as its subsequent dispersal and technological progression within the Siwalik ecosystem. Acknowledgements I would like to thank the four reviewers for constructive and n for the review process. helpful comments, and Susan Anto Mike Rogers, Nick Toth, and Kathy Schick provided detailed suggestions on an earlier version of this paper. I am thankful to the Government of India for approving the project and providing the research visa in afliation with the Department of Geology, Panjab University (Chandigarh). I am especially grateful to Rajeev Patnaik, Robin Dennell, and Gurtek S. Gill for their guidance and support for the duration of this research. R.P. brought Toka to my attention in January 2001; R.D. supervised my doctoral dissertation and provided useful input and advice at various stages; and G.S.G. acted as a cosupervisor by providing considerable geological input in the eld and through discussions. Mary Nicholls, Jemma Pyne, and Damudor Singh Moibungkhongbam provided extensive assistance in the eld and laboratory, without which this
work would not have been possible. Martin A.J. Williams offered general geological interpretations at Toka and Peter Glasby initially outlined the three block diagrams depicting site formation at Toka. A part of this work was funded by the Australian Research Council through the generosity of David W. Cameron, to whom I am very grateful. During the course of this work, academic interaction with numerous colleagues further enhanced my interpretations, respect, and knowledge of the South Asian paleoanthropological record including the Siwalik Hills. They include: Gudrun Corvinus, Claire Gaillard, Rajan Gaur, Richa Jhaldiyal, Baldev S. Karir, Senthil Kumar, Stephen Lycett, Sheila Mishra, Virendra Nath Misra, Gunjan C. Mohapatra, T. Nakata, Avinash C. Nanda, Shanti Pappu, B. Parkash, Michael D. Petraglia, S.N. Rajaguru, Ashok Sahni and Vidhwan S. Soni. Finally, I extend my thanks to Kathy Schick and Nick Toth, co-directors of the Stone Age Institute and CRAFT Research Center (Indiana University), for the postdoctoral position and the overall support of my research. The data presented here represents a part of my doctoral dissertation and any errors are entirely my own. This paper is dedicated to the memory of Gudrun Corvinus.
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Verma, B.C., 1975. Occurrence of Lower Paleolithic artifacts in the Pinjor member (Lower Pleistocene) of Himachal Pradesh. J. Geol. Soc. India 16 (4), 518e521. Verma, B.C., 1991. Siwalik Stone Age culture. Curr. Sci. 61 (8), 496. Verma, B.C., Srivastava, J.P., 1984. Early Paleolithic sites of the outer Siwalik belt in Sirmur District, Himachal Pradesh e their age and stratigraphic position. Man Environ. 8, 13e19. Wadia, D.N., 1928. The Geology of Poonch State. Memoir 31. Geological Survey of India, Calcutta.

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Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

1 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 18 1 1 16 1 2 279 4106 1 26 4 1 2 3 1 1 1 523 1 2 1 1

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

Fig. 8. A view looking northeast across a part of Toka.

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

Fig. 12. A close-up view of the horizontal post-Siwalik terrace deposits.

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

Fig. 16. A fresh ake found in Trench A in the interface.

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

Fig. 19. Block-diagrams depicting the possible formational history of Toka.

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

P.R. Chauhan / Journal of Human Evolution 54 (2008) 591e614

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