EARLY PALEOLITHIC IN VIETNAM: THE PROBLEM OF INTERPRETATION OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL MATERIAL
Abstract
In the study of Southeast Asian archaeology, the problem of interpreting archaeological material is one of the most pressing, as typological classifications of artifacts, due to their “archaic” appearance, have tended not only to date the material but also to suggest a younger age for the archaeological collections. The Langvak site was identified as belonging to the late Paleolithic Son Vi culture of Vietnam, while its general technical and typological characteristics were clearly Early Paleolithic. However, due to the lack of comparative collections at the time of its discovery in 1990-1991, the archaeological material at the site was assumed to be of Late Pleistocene age. A new analysis of the artifacts, in the context of the discovery of the Ankh-e archaeological culture and the presence of dating material in the form of tektites, suggests an earlier date, to the Early- Middle Pleistocene boundary (0.8 million years ago).
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References
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