Talk Title:
Dating the dispersal of the first anatomically modern humans into Eurasia:
A multi-disciplinary approach
Abstract:
Chronology is crucial in the study of the dispersal of modern humans into
Eurasia and the allied area of the disappearance of Archaic populations
already resident there. Dating science has improved dramatically over the
last 10 years. Radiocarbon dating of compound specific biomarkers, such as
hydroxyproline from bones, and the use of more rigorous preparative
chemistry, such as ABOx-SC methods, has improved the dating of very old
samples. OSL dating techniques have also improved significantly, with
single grain methods to the fore. This brief talk will outline some of the
principal methods used in the Oxford laboratory, and present the aims and
outline of a new multi-million pound European Research Council project
(“PalaeoChron” Precision dating of the Palaeolithic: chronological mapping
of the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic of Eurasia”) which aims to provide
robust and reliable chronologies for Eurasian Middle and Upper Palaeolithic
sites, from western Europe, to the far east.
Brief CV:
Professor Tom Higham
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Professor of Archaeological Science
Deputy Director, Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, RLAHA, School of
Archaeology, University of Oxford, Oxford.
Interim Director, Keble College Advanced Studies Centre
EMPLOYMENT
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2011-present: Professor of Archaeological Science, University of Oxford.
2003-present; Deputy Director, Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, Research
Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford.
2001-2003: Senior Archaeologist, Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit,
Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of
Oxford.
1996-2001: Deputy Director, Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory, University
of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand.
TERTIARY EDUCATION
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1990-1993: D.Phil. Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory, Department of Chemistry,
University of Waikato, New Zealand: “Radiocarbon dating the prehistory of New
Zealand”.
1989-1990: MA (with Distinction). Department of Anthropology, University of
Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
1984-1989: BA(Hons: First Class), Department of Anthropology. University of
Otago.
PUBLICATIONS
List of top publications as senior/first author 2008-2013
Higham, T.F.G., Compton, T., Stringer, C., Jacobi, R., Shapiro, B., Trinkaus, E.,
Chandler, B., Gröning, F., Collins, C., Hillson, S., O’Higgins, P., FitzGerald, C., Fagan,
M. 2011. The earliest evidence for anatomically modern humans in northwestern Europe.
Nature 479 (7374): 521-4.
Higham, T.F.G., Jacobi, R.M., Julien, M., David, F., Basell, L., Wood, R., Davies,
S.W.G., Bronk Ramsey, C. 2010. The chronology of the Grotte du Renne (France) and
implications for the association of ornaments and human remains within the
Châtelperronian. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of
America 107(47): 20234-20239.
Higham, T.F.G. 2011. European Middle and Upper Palaeolithic radiocarbon dates are
often older than they look: problems with previous dates and some remedies. Antiquity 85
(327): 235–249.
Higham, T.F.G., Basell, L., Jacobi, R.M, Wood, R., Bronk Ramsey, C. and Conard, N.J.
2012. Τesting models for the beginnings of the Aurignacian and the advent of figurative
art and music: the radiocarbon chronology of Geißenklösterle. Journal of Human
Evolution doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2012.03.003
Higham, T.F.G., Jacobi, R.M., Basell, L., Bronk Ramsey, C., Chiotti, L., Nespoulet, R.
2011. Precision dating of the Palaeolithic: A new radiocarbon chronology for the Abri
Pataud (France), a key Aurignacian sequence. Journal of Human Evolution 61(5): 549563.
Higham, T.F.G., Brock, F., Peresani, M., Broglio, A., Wood, R., Douka, K., 2009.
Problems with radiocarbon dating the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition in Italy.
Quaternary Science Reviews 28:1257-1267.
Higham, T.F.G, Chapman, J, Slavchev, V., Gaydarska, B., Honch, N.V., Yordanov, Y.,
Dimitrova, B. 2007. New perspectives on the Varna cemetery (Bulgaria): AMS dates and
social implications. Antiquity 81: 640-654.
Higham, T.F.G., Warren, R., Belinski, A, Harke, H., Wood, R. 2010. Radiocarbon dating,
stable isotope analysis, and diet-derived offsets in 14C ages from the Klin Yar site,
Russian north Caucasus. Radiocarbon 52, Nr 2–3, 2010, p 653–670.
Higham, T.F.G, Barton, H., Turney, C.M.T., Barker, G., Bronk Ramsey, C., Brock, F.
2009. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal from tropical sequences: Results from the Niah
Great Cave, Sarawak and their broader implications. Journal of Quaternary Science
24(2): 189–197.