CHAPTER 11
THE WEST MOUTH BURIAL SERIES FROM NIAH CAVE:
PAST AND PRESENT
JOHN KRIGBAUM AND JESSICA MANSER
INTRODUCTION
For many years, the pre-Neolithic and Neolithic prehistory of northern Borneo (Sarawak, East
Malaysia) was based principally on the findings from Niah Cave’s West Mouth (e.g., Harrisson 1972).
The West Mouth is part of an extensive limestone massif receiving attention both for its size and the
excavations conducted there over the past fifty years. It has produced one of the largest archaeological
assemblages yet excavated in island Southeast Asia with both late Pleistocene and Holocene cultural
contexts well represented (Harrisson 1957, 1958, 1959a, 1972; Zuraina 1982; Bellwood 1997; Barker et
al. 2002b). At the West Mouth alone, over 170 human burial features in various stages of preservation
were identified by Tom and Barbara Harrisson, the principal excavators working through the aegis of the
Sarawak Museum in the 1950s and 60s (Harrisson 1967). Although much of this skeletal material is
fragmentary and scattered (across three continents), the burial series from West Mouth represents the
largest diachronic collection of late/terminal Pleistocene and Holocene human remains from a single
locality in island Southeast Asia. These remains, albeit fragmentary, provide an unparalleled resource for
diachronic studies addressing late Quaternary subsistence habits, ecology, and population history in a
tropical lowland setting.
This chapter reviews some of the past work that has been done, or attempted, on this complex
assemblage, and reviews the dating of the West Mouth assemblage. At this stage, a population-based
presentation of the burial series is not possible due to the fragmentary, co-mingled nature of the
collection, its disparate location (across three continents), and incomplete status of ongoing research.
Many of these remains require conservation and stabilization before they can be adequately studied and
measured. Two recent dissertation projects, however, by each of the co-authors is reviewed and placed
in context to underscore the full potential of the West Mouth remains for future research.
SITE BACKGROUND
The West Mouth of Niah Cave is part of a much larger cave system, referred to as the ‘Main Cave’ or
‘Niah (Great) Cave’ covering a floor area of ca. 26 acres (10.5 hectares)(Harrisson 1959a). The Great
Cave is situated in Niah National Park, a protected area of ca. 31 km 2 in the Miri Division of Sarawak.
The limestone massif and tower karst formations at Niah are collectively grouped in the Subis Limestone
Member of the Miocene Tangap Formation (Wall 1967). Niah Cave is dominated by the West Mouth
(kuala besar) with other cave mouths in the same complex, all which open to swamp and forest
vegetation throughout the low lying floodplain (Figure 11-1). These include Lobang Tulang (‘Cave of
Bones’), Lobang Angus (‘Burnt Cave’), and Gan Kira (‘Sleeping Place’). Kain Hitam (‘Painted Cave’) is a
related site in an isolated limestone hill a short distance from Gan Kira. All of these aforementioned sites
contain archaeological deposits of varying antiquity, however, by far the majority of work during the 1950s
and 60s (and indeed subsequently) has focused on the West Mouth deposits. In 1977, Zuraina Majid
focused her dissertation research on the West Mouth deposits, clarifying issues of site context,
chronology, and artifact typology (Zuraina 1982). Included in her work was the identification of several
new human burials, all Neolithic in context (see Chapter 12, this volume). Most recently, Graeme Barker
and colleagues working with the Niah Cave Project (NCP), have focused on remaining West Mouth
Krigbaum and Manser p. 1
deposits and features, including the identification of still additional Neolithic burials (Barker et al. 2000,
2001, 2002a, 2002b, 2003).
The Human Burial Series
Arguably the most comprehensive report produced during the Harrisson’s tenure at the Sarawak
Museum and at Niah is the 74 page report by Barbara Harrisson entitled “A classification of Stone Age
burials from Niah Great Cave, Sarawak” published in the Sarawak Museum Journal (Harrisson 1967).
This exhaustive account records an amazing amount of data acquired through careful excavation of 166
burial features. All interested readers should refer to this paper, as it truly stands as the model in
approaching the West Mouth burials, and the intricacies therein.
The West Mouth excavation area (Figure 11-2) was divided by the Harrissons into a ‘habitation’ area
toward the mouth of the cave and a ‘cemetery’ further in, along the northern cave wall. The ‘Hell’ series
of trenches, that begin 96” below ground surface, are within the habitation area (Figure 11-3). Most preNeolithic burials (those not associated with ceramics) were recovered in this front habitation area of the
site. Burials within the cemetery area (Figure 11-4) are shallower and are all Neolithic, associated with
ceramics. West Mouth Neolithic deposits contain primary evidence of burial with people using the cave
for mortuary purposes rather than as a permanent living space (Bellwood 1997). During pre-Neolithic
times, however, the West Mouth has yielded considerable remains of burial and habitation, or in Tom
Harrisson’s terminology ‘frequentation’ (Harrisson 1972). The human burial series offers additional clues
from which to establish a rough chronological (and cultural) framework for the West Mouth deposits. The
detailed burial classification by Barbara Harrisson outlines a variety of burials recorded during excavation.
These types correlated with pre-ceramic and ceramic-associated modes of burial. Although it can be
argued that multiple types of burial can be practiced by the same prehistoric group, this remains the best
practical division of the human remains at West Mouth. The pre-ceramic, pre-Neolithic assemblage
includes primary ‘flexed’, ‘seated’ and secondary ‘mutilation’ burials (Figure 11-5). The ceramicassociated remains consist mostly of primary ‘extended burials and less frequent secondary ‘burnt’ and
‘cremation’ burials (Figure 11-6).
In 1966, Sheilagh and Richard Brooks joined Barbara Harrisson for two months to assist in
documentation and excavation of in situ burials at West Mouth. Their contribution was significant and
they were assigned the task of analysis of the majority of human remains excavated. Although
circumstances have not permitted that work to be realized, owing to the fragmentary nature of the
collection, they did produce several important works on the burial series (Brooks and Brooks, 1968;
Brooks et al. 1979) including one work identifying arm positions by sex in a series of burials, and another
attempting paleoserology and radiocarbon dating. At this writing, a third dissertation on the Neolithic
component of this assemblage is underway at the University of Cambridge and an edited volume is being
organized that will serve as the burial report for the West Mouth human burial series.
Dating and Burial Chronology
The radiocarbon dating protocol that Harrisson initiated at Niah in the late 1950s was noteworthy in
his application of a new technique using a very reputable lab (Groningen, the Netherlands) to establish
chronology at the West Mouth. From the start, however, he was naïve in the collection and reporting of
these data (Harrisson, 1957, 1958, 1959a, 1959b). The publications listed present nine Groningen dates
(8 charcoal, 1 coffin wood), noting approximate depth but without stratigraphic context or accurate
placement within the site proper. Further dating (on charcoal, coffin wood, and bone) using Geochron
Labs (Cambridge, Mass., USA) in the 1960s and Groningen in the 1970s was spearheaded by Harrisson,
however, the basic West Mouth chronology (e.g., Harrisson 1972) remained unchanged. Additional dates
were added to the West Mouth chronology by Zuraina (1982) and Krigbaum (2001). These dates, and
their 2range. in addition to dates on charcoal submitted by the NCP, are graphically depicted in Figure
11-7.
Krigbaum and Manser p. 2
In an effort to secure chronology of the West Mouth burial series, thirty Neolithic and pre-Neolithic
burials were submitted for radiocarbon dating to RIKEN Labs in Japan (The Institute of Physical and
Chemical Research) by the Brooks. Bone dates were reported in 1979 (Brooks et al. 1979), noting
fraction sampled for each date: six dates were derived from bone apatite, 24 from ‘collagen’ in various
states of preservation. These bone dates are indicated as thin lines on Figure 11-7. After this
publication, no critical assessment of these or any West Mouth dates was made, except by Spriggs
(1989), who dismissed all West Mouth bone dates as untenable for various reasons, mainly due to poor
procedures practiced by most labs in dating bone and in the poor preservation in general of bone in the
lower latitudes.
The West Mouth bone dates are indeed problematic for a number of reasons. Bone dates should
follow careful protocols and these methods were hardly in place in the mid-1970s when bone chemistry
and stable isotope analysis was in its infancy. In addition to its fragmentary condition, the bone from
West Mouth is poorly preserved with respect to collagen. Recent detailed isotopic study of the human
remains from West Mouth was unable to isolate collagen from 18 of the 30 bone samples dated by
RIKEN (Krigbaum 2001). Further, repeated attempts on over 100 bone samples (including those 18)
using various concentrations of HCL (1 M, .1 M, etc.) did not yield collagen levels suitable for dating or
paleodietary analysis. Compound-specific attempts to retrieve characteristic amino acids from these
materials is currently ongoing. However, for the reasons stated above, the bone dates are rejected from
the corpus of radiocarbon dates for West Mouth.
Importantly, the bone dates created the impression of a continuous occupation at the West Mouth
whereas the charcoal dates, taken as a whole, statistically demonstrate a gap in the early Holocene of
approximately 4000 years. In other words, the bone dates suggest that people were present at West
Mouth when conceivably they were not, if one were to follow the suggestion of the charcoal dates.
Certainly more archaeological research is required to answer this claim, but the radiocarbon dates and
their ranges are suggestive of a Mid-Holocene ‘gap’ in the record at West Mouth. This, then provides a
clear division between the pre-Neolithic burial assemblage and the Neolithic burials at the site. Funding
is currently being secured to directly date a sample of burials using electron spin resonance dating (ESR)
on tooth enamel (e.g., Grün and Stringer 1991).
PALEODIET IN PRE-NEOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC WEST MOUTH BURIALS:
APPLICATION OF STABLE ISOTOPES OF CARBON DERIVED FROM HUMAN TOOTH ENAMEL
Introduction
The West Mouth human burial series contains important data about the foraging people who used
and inhabited the Niah region during the late Pleistocene and Holocene periods. As discussed above,
the human skeletal remains are in fragmentary condition and poorly preserved. One useful approach
towards fragmentary remains is to utilize methods of bone chemistry to address issues of paleodiet and
dietary inference. Methods such as stable isotope analysis are frequently incorporated into studies of
subsistence and settlement and provide data at the individual level of analysis (Krigbaum and Ambrose,
2003; Schoeninger and Moore, 1992). Such data complement subsistence inferences and analysis
based on flora and fauna recovered from archaeological sites.
Reviews of stable carbon isotope studies are readily available in the literature (e.g., Ambrose 1993;
Schoeninger 1995; Koch et al. 1994). Based on the premise “you are what you eat, ” biological tissues
such as bone and tooth enamel capture dietary signals during the formation of those tissues. With
fragmentary remains, approaching a compromised collection such as the West Mouth poses particular
problems, as collagen is poorly degraded, as observed with the dating issues discussed above. Bone, as
a tissue, forms and is continually remodeled during the life of an individual. Tooth enamel, in contrast, is
formed in sequential fashion during childhood and does not remodel over time. Biogeochemical methods
using tooth enamel are particularly robust with respect to degraded material because, compared to bone,
tooth enamel has large crystalline structure and is less subjected to diagenesis over time. Stable isotope
Krigbaum and Manser p. 3
studies using tooth enamel to explore paleoecology and paleodiet of extinct organisms are commonplace
in paleontology and are increasingly used in studies of archaeological remains. Indeed, dissertation
research on the Niah Cave human remains and fauna focused specifically on reconstructing the
subsistence ecology of the human individuals recovered from West Mouth (Krigbaum 2001, 2003, 2005).
Methods
All organic tissues, by definition, contain carbon. Carbon, as an element, naturally consists of three
isotopes, one unstable (14C) and two stable (12C and 13C). 12C is more abundant (98.89%) but lighter than
13C (1.11%) because there are more neutrons present in their nuclei and this influences their atomic
weight. Isotopes of a given element have the same number of protons in their nucleus and are similar
chemically. They differ in the number of neutrons present in their nuclei which in turn affects their atomic
mass. For example, for the 3 isotopes of carbon each with 6 protons—the two stable isotopes of carbon
have 6 and 7 neutrons (12C and 13C, respectively) while the third and heaviest is unstable with 8 neutrons
(14C).
An isotope ratio is simply the mass of the heavier isotope over the mass of its lighter counterpart.
Absolute abundance of each isotope is not generally recorded but is measured by means of mass
spectrometry against a standard, to average out analytical deviations. Ratios are presented in parts per
thousand or simply ‘per mil’ (‰) and are reported in diminutive case delta () notation, with reference to
the standard. In delta notation, the equation used to express a sample A (where R is 13C/12C or 18O/16O
relative to their respective standard is as follows:
A(‰)= (Rsample – Rsample/Rstandard) x1000 or (Rsample/Rstandard – 1) x 1000.
Differences in mass influence the chemical reaction rate of each isotope whereby lighter isotopes
(i.e., those with fewer neutrons) are more mobile and react faster than heavier ones. As a result, isotopic
variations exist in nature and complex physiological and environmental factors either select for or
discriminate against heavier isotopes over lighter ones. This fundamental phenomenon, referred to as
fractionation, permits very subtle differences of isotope abundance in biological tissues, such as tooth
enamel, to be measured and related to biological processes such as photosynthesis and food
metabolism. Fractionation is simply the difference in isotopic composition ( 13C/12C or 18O/16O) between a
reactant/substrate, such as food, and its product, such as the consumer’s tooth enamel (Schoeninger
1995). If the heavy isotope is preferentially incorporated into the product, the product would be referred
to as ‘enriched.’ Conversely, if the heavy isotope is discriminated against, or lost, the product would be
referred to as ‘depleted.’
Most terrestrial plants (trees, shrubs, herbs, temperate and high altitude grasses) follow the C 3
photosynthetic pathway (Figure 8). They average about –27‰ and show a broad range between ca. –20
to –35‰. Plants endemic to the tropical rain forest of Malaysia are virtually all C 3 plants. C4 plants are
more specialized and include arid-adapted grasses and sedges. They average –12.5‰ and have a
narrower range between –7 and -16‰. Significantly, the values between these two groups of plants do
not overlap. One significant observation concerning C3 isotopic variation, is a phenomenon referred to as
the ‘canopy effect’ whereby increasingly negative 13C values are observed in the understory of densely
forested habitats.
A plants isotopic composition is maintained in the food chain by a series of fractionation events,
positive steps or offsets in 13C value, especially between plants and their primary consumers. (The
difference between primary and secondary consumers is somewhat minimal.) ‘You are what you eat’ is
accurate with respect to carbon, and depending upon what tissue is analyzed, you add the appropriate
offset to interpret the results. For example, the offset of tooth enamel is ca. 14‰. Based on these figures
and an average C3 diet of –27.5‰, tooth enamel 13C values would be expected to fall at about -13‰ for
a pure C3 diet.
Krigbaum and Manser p. 4
Third molar tooth enamel was selected on fragmentary remains with good burial context.
Samples were cleaned of adhering debris and dentine using a Dremel tool and inspected under a
binocular microscope prior to grinding. Cleaned tooth enamel was oxidized in a 2% solution of Clorox
bleach for about 16 hours to remove humic acids and organics; twice rinsed in DI-H2O and pretreated
with 0.1 M Acetic Acid for 16 hours to remove any diagenetic and adsorbed secondary carbonates and
twice rinsed again with DI-H2O. Samples were then freeze-dried (lyophilized) and converted to CO2 by
reaction with 100% phosphoric acid for two hours at 90 C. After passing the evolved CO2 through a
silver phosphate trap to remove evolved H2S, the CO2 gas was collected by cryogenic distillation. Stable
isotope ratios for carbon and oxygen derived from tooth enamel apatite were then measured on a
Finnigan MAT 251 mass spectrometer at Yale University’s Stable Isotope Laboratory. Standard error for
tooth enamel 13C values is less than 0.05‰.
Results
The results show statistically significant differences by burial type at Niah Cave for 13C values, as
graphically depicted in Figure 11-9. 18O values are here plotted to assist in identifying variation in the
13C values but are not discussed. The 13C values, however, have implications for interpreting
differences between individuals by burial type, at least with respect to different modes of subsistence
during the pre-Neolithic and Neolithic periods. The data plotted in Figure 11-9 show 13 pre-Neolithic
burials that produced acceptable results (mean: -14.3‰) and 26 Neolithic burials with good results
(mean: -13.1‰). The differences between the two samples are statistically significant and demonstrate a
clear order of magnitude in diet between the two pooled samples. By type, Neolithic burials show
statistically less negative values, on average, than do the pre-Neolithic burials. Pre-Neolithic ‘Mutilation’
burials (N=4) average –14.9‰, ‘Flexed’ burials (N=6) average –14.4‰, and ‘Seated’ burials (N=3)
average –13.3‰. Neolithic ‘Extended’ burials (N=20) average –13.1‰, ‘Burnt’ burials (N=4) average –
13.7‰, and ‘Cremation’ burials (N=2) average –12.3‰.
A working hypothesis (Krigbaum 2003, 2005) for these isotopic data interprets the less negative
values in the Neolithic reflecting those individuals that have changed their subsistence regime. The
positive shift in 13C values suggest that those individuals with 13C values of –13‰ and –12‰, for
example, are eating plant foods collected and or grown from more open habitats than those individuals
with 13C values of –15‰ and -14‰. All of the individuals sampled are likely incorporating C3 meat (wild
boar, primates, etc.) as well, however, plant foods form a large part of most human diets, particularly in
tropical rain forest ecosystems. Alternative explanations might include a shift towards higher marine
foods, however, marine foods from coastal Malaysian contexts show clear 13C enrichment from
terrestrial sources of carbon (e.g., Rodelli et al. 1984). This trend applies to freshwater shellfish as well.
Another explanation might be that C4 cultigens such as millet and/or Job’s tears may have been grown
and eaten significantly more than endemic food crops. This too, is unlikely, as in northern Borneo, the
perhumid climate would make the growth and maintenance of these crops tentative at best, in prehistoric
times.
The people buried at West Mouth, sampled in this study, demonstrate a diachronic trend in diet that is
opposite what one would expect in the increasingly perhumid climate typical of the Holocene period in
tropical Southeast Asia. Such a warming trend of improving climate should make rain forest increasingly
dense and canopied. If there were no change in ‘broad spectrum’ subsistence hunting and gathering,
one would expect a shift in the opposite direction (more negative 13C values) rather than what is
observed. In all likelihood, the Neolithic individuals represented at Niah Cave were indeed ‘broad
spectrum foragers, however, those individuals with less negative 13C values were incorporating plant
foods grown in open settings more regularly than those individuals with more negative 13C values.
Sather (1995) discusses the implications of changing subsistence in the Neolithic and outlines a potential
scenario whereby some Neolithic groups may indeed have opted to become secondary foragers while
others may have adopted incipient agriculture, horticulture, or the like. This notion is very provocative
with respect to the Niah Neolitihic burials, as the increased heterogeniety of ‘burnt’ burials and ‘extended’
Krigbaum and Manser p. 5
burials, in particular, suggests that there are a number of different subsistence patterns at play. Future
research should aid in teasing these differences apart.
FACE SHAPE IN PRE-NEOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC WEST MOUTH BURIALS:
A TEST OF THE MID-HOLOCENE REPLACEMENT HYPOTHESIS
Introduction
Geometric morphometric methods were used to explore the evidence for the replacement of an
Austromelanesian morphology/population by a Southern Mongoloid morphology/population during the
mid-Holocene at the West Mouth site and to investigate face shape differences between the West Mouth
Pre-Neolithic and Neolithic samples (Hooijer 1950, 1952; von Koenigswald 1952; Jacob 1967; Bulbeck
1981, 1982; Turner 1990; Ballinger et al. 1992; Bellwood 1993, 1997; Blust 1999). Geometric
morphometric methods have been shown to have several advantages over traditional linear distance data
including their ability to more accurately capture shape and their use with fragmentary skeletal remains
(e.g., Bookstein et al. 1999, Delson et al. 2001, Hennessy and Stringer 2002; Harvati 2003).
Facial landmark data were selected for a few reasons. First, East Asian, Southeast Asian,
Melanesian, Polynesian and Australian samples have been shown to differ in facial shape and
dimensions (e.g., Howells 1973, 1976, 1989; Pietrusewsky 1979, 1984, 1990; Bulbeck 1981; Lahr 1996).
Thus, the variation among recent East Asia-Pacific human groups in facial morphology will be useful in
determining to which group(s) the West Mouth temporal samples share their greatest affinities. In
addition, the subsets of landmarks (i.e., upper-face and mid-face subsets) represent areas of the face that
have been used to test predictions of population replacement in Southeast Asia (Bulbeck 1981).
Methods
The West Mouth site, Niah Cave has yielded over 200 human burials, the majority of which can be
categorized into either the Pre-Neolithic or the Neolithic periods based on Barbara Harrisson’s
classification (Harrisson 1967). A reduced number of burials, however, were suitable for the sampling
methods employed in this study (N=4-7) as the result of taphonomic processes in the cave, general
deterioration of excavated skeletal material over the past 40-50 years in museum collections, and the
exclusion of certain burial types that are fragmentary by definition (i.e., cremations).
Homologous landmark data in three dimensions were collected on the West Mouth and 20 recent
comparative samples from East Asia (Japan and China), Southeast Asia (Borneo, Java, Sumatra, the
Philippines, and Thailand), Island South Asia (Nicobar and Andaman Islands), greater Australia (Australia
and Tasmania), Melanesia (Solomon Islands, New Britain, the Bismarck Archipelago, and New Guinea),
and Polynesia (Easter Island, the Marquesas, Tahiti, and New Zealand) with a portable 3-D digitizing
device (Microscribe 3DX) and InScribe software. The landmarks are standard anatomical landmarks of
the human cranium as defined by Howells (1973), Ahlström (1996), and White and Folkens (2000). Due
to the incomplete nature of the West Mouth remains, landmarks were chosen based on frequency of
preservation and analyses were performed on subsets of landmarks representing localized areas of the
face. For instance, nasion, glabella, frontotemporale and frontomalorbitale constitute the ‘upper-face’
dataset, while the ‘mid-face’ dataset consists of frontomaltemporale, orbitale, jugale, and zygomaxillare.
Digitized specimens are adult individuals with no evidence of pathology or intentional cranial deformation.
For each subset of data the first step in the analysis of 3-D landmarks involved scaling, translating,
and rotating each digitized specimen (now represented by a configuration of landmarks) into a common
coordinate system using the generalized least-squares Procrustes superimposition method (GLS) in
GRF-ND software (Slice 1999). Using GLS, an average form for the entire data subset was computed
and each configuration of landmarks (each specimen) in the sample was aligned to this average form and
scaled to unit centroid size (Rohlf and Slice 1990). Standard multivariate methods were then applied to
the shape variables represented by the fitted coordinates of each specimen (Rohlf 1999).
Krigbaum and Manser p. 6
Results
For each dataset a principal components analysis (PCA) was performed on the shape variables from
the two West Mouth and 20 comparative samples in order to reduce the number of dimensions and to
look at group distinctiveness. ANOVAs carried out on the PC scores detected significant sample
differences on PC1-3 for both the upper and mid-face datasets. However, post-hoc Bonferroni testing
(α=0.05) did not reveal the two West Mouth samples to be significantly different from each other in either
upper or mid-face shape.
The landmarks considered the most influential on a given PC, and thus most responsible for group
separation, were those with the greatest eigenvector coefficients. The upper-face landmarks most
influential on PC1 and PC2 were frontotemporale and frontomalorbitale, and nasion and glabella on PC3.
For the mid-face dataset PC1 was influenced most by zygomaxillare, PC2 by zygomaxillare, orbitale, and
jugale, and PC3 by jugale.
Regarding the upper-face dataset, the Pre-Neolithic sample mean was located on the positive end of
PC1, whereas the Neolithic sample mean was on the negative end. Both temporal samples were located
on the negative side of PC2 and PC3. Overall the Pre-Neolithic sample can be interpreted, based on the
influential landmarks, as having a relatively lengthened superciliary region and a taller frontal with a
prominent glabella. The Neolithic sample also possessed a taller frontal with a prominent glabella, but
with a shortened superciliary region compared to the Pre-Neolithic sample. When individual West Mouth
specimen scores for PC1-3 were added to the plots of the individual geographic groups, variation within
each temporal sample became apparent (Figure 11-10). In each geographic group plot of PC1 x PC2 all
West Mouth specimens fell within most, if not all, of the 68% confidence ellipses enclosing samples. The
one exception were the two Pre-Neolithic specimens that fell outside the ellipses surrounding the Japan,
north China, and south China samples in the East Asia geographic group plot. Therefore, along PC1 and
PC2 the West Mouth specimens could not be viewed as outliers in the majority of cases. The situation
was different along PC3, however, where one Pre-Neolithic specimen was consistently outside the 68%
confidence ellipses in each of the geographic plots. Also apparent was the lack of significant separation
between the Neolithic specimen and the three Pre-Neolithic specimens. In fact along each PC, two of the
Pre-Neolithic specimens were closer to the Neolithic specimen than either was to the third Pre-Neolithic
specimen. This result may indicate a considerable level of variation, regarding upper face morphology,
within the Pre-Neolithic sample.
For the mid-face dataset both West Mouth sample means fell on the negative sides of PC1-3. The
Pre-Neolithic sample had a relatively more negative score on PC2 and PC3, whereas the Neolithic
sample had a more negative score on PC1. Compared to the recent human samples falling on the
positive end of these axes both temporal samples could be described as having relatively tall, narrow,
and non-flaring zygomatics directed superior-medially. Individual West Mouth specimens were added to
the PC plots (Figure 11-11) in order to determine how much scatter occurred in each temporal sample. In
general there was overlapping between the Pre-Neolithic and Neolithic ranges on the first three PCs. All
West Mouth specimens were least likely to fall within the range of East Asian and Island South Asia
samples on PC1. A similar pattern was seen on PC2 where, except for a Neolithic outlier, neither the
Pre-Neolithic nor the Neolithic specimens tended to fall within the boundaries of East Asian or Island
South Asian samples. On PC3 the West Mouth specimens, regardless of temporal group membership,
were least likely to fall within the East Asian sample ellipses. In fact most were located within the
Australia, Melanesia, Polynesia, and Southeast Asia sample ranges.
Mahalanobis D2 values were calculated and used in multidimensional scaling analyses (2-D MDS) in
order to better visualize group separation (Figure 11-12). Concerning the upper-face dataset, the
samples with the closest distances to the Pre-Neolithic sample were two Polynesian samples (i.e., the
Marquesas and New Zealand) and a Southeast Asian sample (i.e., Sumatra). Two Australian samples
(i.e., Australia and Tasmania) and a Polynesian sample (i.e., Easter Island) had the smallest distances to
Krigbaum and Manser p. 7
the Neolithic sample. For the mid-face dataset the West Mouth-Pre-Neolithic sample had the smallest
distances to Southeast Asian (i.e., Borneo), Polynesian (i.e., Marquesas) and Melanesian (i.e., Solomon
Islands) samples, although none of these was significant. The comparative samples with the smallest
distances to the Neolithic sample were from Southeast Asia (i.e., Java and Philippines) and Tasmania.
To summarize the results, Mahalanobis distances, MDS analyses, and PCA generated similar
outcomes in each 3-D dataset such that the Pre-Neolithic sample shared the closest affinities with
Southeast Asian and Polynesian samples with respect to both upper and mid-face shape. The Neolithic
sample, while also demonstrating upper and mid-face similarities to Southeast Asian and Polynesian
samples, in addition was found to have close affinities to Australian samples. Despite these slight
differences between the temporal samples, overall however, both were the least similar in upper and midface shape to East Asian samples. Finally, considerable intra-sample variability was shown to
characterize the Pre-Neolithic and Neolithic samples.
Conclusions
Diachronic and fairly complete human skeletal series from the Mesolithic-Neolithic boundary in island
Southeast Asia are relatively rare. This study used one such burial series from Borneo and employed
geometric morphometric methods to investigate models of late Pleistocene-Holocene population
processes. The results of the upper and mid-face datasets did not find the differences between the PreNeolithic and Neolithic face shapes to be statistically significant, thus failing to support the replacement
model for this site. The 3-D results also revealed considerable face shape variation within the PreNeolithic and the Neolithic samples, such that individuals from one temporal group overlapped the range
of the other.
Although the results failed to support a rapid migration and replacement model for the West Mouth,
Niah Cave; nevertheless three other scenarios remain as possible explanations of the data: that a
migrating group did reach northwest Borneo but its genetic contribution was not enough to alter the
phenotype of the original population or its phenotype was similar to the phenotype of the original
population and thus remains undetected in the Neolithic sample or the replacement occurred earlier in
time and was not sampled by the burial groups studied here.
CONCLUSIONS
The West Mouth remains provide a unique source of information to better understand the paleobiology
and population history of past modern humans inhabiting the humid tropics of island Southeast Asia. As
the two case studies reviewed above outline, although different in terms of approach and research
problem addressed, the two demonstrate novel means to approach fragmentary skeletal collections such
as the West Mouth burial series from Niah Cave. From the Deep Skull (see Chapter 9, this volume) to the
latest Neolithic burial, the sheer size and diversity of this collection offers numerous research
opportunities for the physical anthropologist.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Much appreciation to Prof. Dato’ Zuraina Majid and her colleagues and staff for their dedication to
Malaysian prehistory and their invitation to contribute to this volume. Thanks to colleagues and staff at
the Sarawak Museum, especially Dr. Sanib Said, Director, and Edmund Kurui. Thanks also to Prof. Chris
Stringer, Robert Kruzynski, and Louise Humphrey at The Natural History Museum (London); Profs.
Sheilagh and Richard Brooks and Bernardo Arriaza at University of Nevada (Las Vegas); John Kingston
(Emory University) and Terry Harrison (NYU); and to Graeme Barker (Univ. Cambridge) and all
colleagues with the Niah Cave Project.
Krigbaum and Manser p. 8
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FIGURE CAPTIONS
Figure 1. Outline of Niah (Great) Cave showing location of different mouths of archaeological interest.
Note placement of excavation area in West Mouth. (Modified from Wilford, 1964 and Hazebroek &
Kashim, 2000)
Figure 2. Niah Cave (West Mouth) Site Map. Trench layout noting three central areas of concentrated
archaeological excavation: 1) pre-Neolithic ‘habitation’ area; 2) the deeper ‘Hell’ series of trenches; and
3) the Neolithic ‘cemetery.’ Identified burials are indicated by the + signs and are more concentrated in
the cemetery area of the site.
Figure 3. West Mouth of Niah Cave, rock face above excavation area. The ‘habitation’ area is essentially
that area, in light, below the rock overhang and rock lip, to the right of the covered walkway. The
‘cemetery’ area is in the darkness to the right. The fenced enclosure delimits the area of archaeological
significance at West Mouth.
Figure 4. West Mouth of Niah Cave, ‘cemetery’ area of cave where most Neolithic burials were
recovered.
Figure 5. Pre-Neolithic burial types as classified by B. Harrisson (1967). Left to right: ‘Flexed, ‘Mutilation’,
and ‘Seated.’
Figure 6. Neolithic burial types as classified by B. Harrisson (1967). Clockwise from upper right: ‘Burnt’
jar burial, Extended burial drawings of B. Harrisson (Harrisson archive notebooks), ‘Extended’ burial, and
ornate decorated pottery typical of Neolithic occupation at West Mouth. Cremation burials are not shown.
Figure 7. Uncalibrated radiocarbon dates for Niah Cave (West Mouth). Dates are plotted with 2 range.
Thick lines indicate reliable and ‘accepted’ non-NCP dates on charcoal or wood. Dashed lines indicate
reliable and ‘accepted’ NCP AMS charcoal dates. Thin lines indicate unreliable ‘rejected’ dates on bone
collagen or apatite fraction associated.
Figure 8. 13C variation of C3 and C4 plants including notable cultigens
(after Deines, 1980)
Figure 9. Pre-Neolithic and Neolithic 13C and 18O values (tooth enamel apatite) for human remains by
burial type from West Mouth (Niah Cave). Mean and standard deviations are plotted in diamonds by
burial type, as indicated.
Figures 10-12. Figure Captions in WORD document.
Krigbaum and Manser p. 14