A massive 200,000-year-old Paleolithic network spanning over 100,000 km² has been revealed in China’s Changbai Mountains. Surveys uncovered 1,000+ sites with chipped stone tools, including the 220,000-year-old Jean Randong site and the remarkable Shan Tiang Dong, which captures the Paleolithic-to-Neolithic transition. Perhaps most stunning: a 53 cm blade core of unprecedented scale, and 27,000-year-old polished tools that push back when polishing techniques emerged. Obsidian was sourced from volcanic deposits 200 km away — sophisticated trade networks operating far earlier than expected.
100,000 km² Paleolithic tool network discovered in Changbai Mountains
Key facts
- Survey of 6,500 square km across 100,000 km area identified over 1,000 sites with chipped stone tools
- Cultural sequence spans approximately 200,000 years based on excavations at five major sites
- Jean Randong site pushes human activity timeline to about 220,000 years ago
- Daong and Fanglin sites document emergence and refinement of microlithic techniques
- Shan Tiang Dong site captures Paleolithic to Neolithic transition with likely ritual bone objects
- Obsidian sourcing expanded from nearby riverbeds to volcanic deposits 200 km away
- 27,000-year-old polished stone tools found, challenging beliefs about when polishing techniques emerged
- Giant 53 cm blade core discovered, unprecedented in scale and craftsmanship worldwide
Site mentioned
📍 Nuraghe Nullu🌍 Show on the globe
Sources
The Late Paleolithic of the Changbai Mountains: A refined ...sciencedirect.com
The Changbai Mountains represent a critical, yet understudied corridor for Late Paleolithic population dynamics and dissemination of ...
China Daily | Tracing Footsteps in Volcanic Stone-Liaoning Universityenweb.lnu.edu.cn
Changbai Mountain research reveals how obsidian helped humans survive an unforgiving northern landscape over 50,000 years ago, report Wang Ru ...
Tracing footsteps in volcanic stone - Chinadaily.com.cnglobal.chinadaily.com.cn
Changbai Mountain research reveals how obsidian helped humans survive an unforgiving northern landscape over 50,000 years ago, ...
Lithic Technological Organization in the Changbai Mountains at the ...tandfonline.com
This study concludes that the lithic technological organization of the Dadong site's lower layer is associated with highly mobile foragers of the LGM.
Studies on stone tools found in China shed light on evolutionchinadailyhk.com
The discovery of obsidian as a raw material for stone tools at this site is important in China's archaeological work on the Paleolithic period.
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