Optically stimulated luminescence dating and its significance of the newly discovered Paleolithic sites in Bose Basin, Guangxi, Southern China

In recent years, several Paleolithic sites have been discovered in Bose Basin along You River, the Southern China. The newly excavated Xiangqun site(XQ: 23° 37' 3.24″ N, 107° 01' 2.27″ E)and Huoshaoshan site(HSS-A: 23° 46' 11.00″ N, 106° 42' 4.43″ E; HSS-B: 23° 46' 3.76″ N, 106° 42' 11.38″ E; HSS-C: 23° 46' 8.11″ N, 106° 42' 6.45″ E)are located on the third and fourth terrace of You River respectively. The Paleolithic industry belongs to the typical gravel industry in the Southern China, and Paleolithic is dominated by large cutting tools(LCTs). In this study, 13 samples were collected from HSS sediment section(5.0 m thick)and XQ sediment section(5.6 m thick)for optically stimulated luminescence(OSL) dating. The samples of the two sites were dated by quartz SAR-OSL and quartz TT-OSL. Meanwhile, the grain size and magnetic susceptibility of the sediment samples were measured to reconstruct the environmental evolution of the archaeological site. Details from Xiangqun and Huoshaoshan sections are as follows, 101 samples were collected from the HSS-A sediment section(5.0 m thick), 24 samples were collected from the HSS-B sediment section(2.3 m thick), 26 samples were collected from the HSS-C sediment section(2.6 m thick), and 57 samples were collected from the XQ sediment section(5.6 m thick). The age of the Paleolithics in HSS-A is ca. 8~97 ka, the age of strata in HSS-B and HSS-C is ca. 9~35 ka, and the age of stone tools at XQ site is ca. 39~52 ka. Stratigraphic characteristics and grain size data show that the relatively warm and humid climate in Bose Basin were conducive to the survival of early human during Late Quaternary. Stone tools have been found in several layers of the HSS and XQ sites, which show that the terraces along the You River provide a good living environment for the early human, and the intermountain-basin is an ideal place for the people to live in.